All About Willo
How Willo Came to Be
College students are facing more stress, anxiety, and burnout than ever, and campus services are often stretched thin. Even when support exists, it can be hard to find, confusing to navigate, or easy to follow through on after an appointment.
Willo was built at UC San Diego to make wellness support easier to access and easier to use. It connects students to trusted campus resources, guided collections, events, and self-care tools in one place, with clear pathways for both everyday support and urgent help.
Willo also works with campus care teams so recommendations from providers can connect directly to curated in-app support. The goal is simple: turn one conversation into real follow-through and make wellness support part of the student experience, not something students have to figure out on their own.
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The Joan & Irwin Jacobs Center for Health Innovation (JCHI), in collaboration with UC San Diego students, has developed a groundbreaking app that redefines student mental health and well-being support. Willo stands out as an innovative self-care and healthcare app, offering a personalized, on-demand solution that connects students to essential campus resources. Unlike traditional approaches, Willo integrates an intuitive system aggregator that customizes recommendations for services, resources, and apps based on individual interests and goals. With features like health analytics and motivational incentives, Willo not only breaks down barriers to mental health resources but also fosters active engagement and self-management. This app is set to revolutionize how students approach their mental health, aiming to inspire a cultural shift toward greater awareness, open dialogue, and proactive well-being. This app is set to revolutionize how students approach their mental health, aiming to inspire a cultural shift toward greater awareness, open dialogue, and proactive well-being. For the first time, UC San Diego students will spend more time engaging in their mental health and well-being instead of spending hours trying to find the right campus services and activities. |
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Key Features
- A recommendation engine
- Health analytics
- Active and passive sensing
- Gamification and incentives
- Predictive algorithm for anxiety and depression
Willo V 2.0
Originally launched in September 2024, Willo has now been updated to Version 2.0 and is available for download.
What’s new in V2.0:
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Technology at Scale
Willo continues to be developed with input from students to ensure it remains relevant and useful for supporting student well-being. The ultimate goal of this groundbreaking app is to scale the technology to other universities.
Partners
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State of California, UC San Diego
Student Health Service and CAPS, AWS,
Data Science Alliance, Healthcare Human Factors
To support and join our efforts in improving student mental health and well-being, please contact Nicole May, Co-Director JCHI, nmay@health.ucsd.edu.
Meet Willo!
See what the app is about and how you can start your wellness journey today.
Student-Built Support That Actually Fits Student Life
Learn how Willo turns student insight into practical tools, curated resources, and real pathways to support.
Willo in the News
See how Willo is being recognized for advancing student wellness and access to support.
Having App Trouble?
For support or inquiries about the app, our help and FAQ section can provide answers.
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*App only available to US based users*
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