JMIR Publications

Background:

University students face substantial underserved mental health needs. Digital “front doors” that combine brief screening, decision support, and timely counselor follow-up may help close access and workflow gaps on campus. SISKA (Sistem Informasi Layanan Konseling Akademik “academic counseling information system”) was developed as an Android app with a counselor-facing web dashboard to support routine self-assessment, risk-tiering, just-in-time guidance, referral activation, and continuous follow-up within real university workflows.

Objective:

The study aims to evaluate the feasibility, acceptability, and usability of SISKA in Indonesian public universities and to identify strengths and friction points to inform implementation at scale.

Methods:

This exploratory sequential mixed-methods study recruited trained lecturer-counselors (n=20) who provided qualitative input on practicality and integration and 3 student cohorts to assess (1) usability (n=35 students who completed all 10 System Usability Scale [SUS] questions), (2) use analytics (n=1057 active accounts from December 2024 to October 2025), and (3) changes in mental health before and after the intervention (n=119 students with ≥1 counseling session and paired daily mental health assessment scores). This was a single-arm feasibility study without a comparator group. Analyses included descriptive summaries and paired tests; qualitative data were analyzed thematically to explain quantitative patterns.

Results:

Monthly uptake showed a launch spike, a mid-year trough, and a late-year uptick. Usability metrics showed a short learning curve and manageable cognitive load (SUS mean score 83.3, SD 10.5) with strong item agreement on ease, quick learning, and integration. In the pre- and postintervention cohort, daily mental health assessment scores declined from a mean 33.9 (SD 8.07) to a mean 32.8 (SD 8.94; Δ=−1.14; =.03), indicating a statistically significant but small preliminary reduction in distress following counseling. Qualitatively, students described feelings of psychological safety, that the psychoeducation was helpful, and that the scheduling was oriented to the services; friction points included interface inconsistencies, multistep confirmation, and intermittent connectivity or notification issues.

Conclusions:

SISKA appears feasible and acceptable for campus deployment, enabling earlier support pathways and showing proximal improvement among counseled students. Priorities for scaling up the app include user interface standardization, streamlined confirmation flows, and reliable, context-sensitive notifications, alongside embedding measurement-based care loops to convert routine self-reports into timely feedback and action. These findings support the readiness of the app for structured implementation in university settings.