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This research contributes to the empirical literature on university student mental well-being by investigating the prevalence and socio-demographic correlates of severe levels of psychological distress. More than 5000 students at a metropolitan Australian university participated in an anonymous online survey in 2013 that included the short form of the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scales (DASS-21). Comparisons with published research show that our respondents' DASS results were substantially higher than those observed in studies with general community samples, but comparable to other studies targeting university students. Of the explanatory variables analysed, the student's field of study, the number of hours spent studying per week and the number of hours spent caring for family members were all strongly associated with scores in the severe or extremely severe range for each of the DASS scales. These findings provide guidance for policy development, service delivery and further research in higher education.

Peer review is integral to academic endeavour, but opportunities for students to benefit from peer review in higher education remain limited, and relatively little is known about how student perceptions influence their appreciation of peer review. University student perceptions were examined before and after experiencing student peer review in four university subjects differing in discipline, year level and class size. Prior to engaging in peer review, students had remarkably high expectations of both the process and the competence of their peers as reviewers. Students reported high satisfaction levels with the peer-review process and its positive impact on their learning, and particularly showed an enhanced appreciation of the influence of review writing on learning. However, a modest overall downward shift in positive perceptions was observed following peer review, suggesting that student opinions of peer review became somewhat more polarized as a consequence of their experiences. Drawing on survey response data and student comments, several recommendations are made that may help to improve student perceptions of peer review and ensure that the diverse learning benefits of the peer-review process are achieved.

Involving students in peer review has many pedagogical benefits, but few studies have explicitly investigated relationships between the content of peer reviews, student perceptions and assessment outcomes. We conducted a case study of peer review within a third-year undergraduate subject at a research-intensive Australian university, in which we examined: (1) students' perceptions of the peer review process before and after peer review, (2) content of the peer reviews and what kinds of feedback were adopted and (3) the effect of participation in peer review on performance (grades) in the assessment task. Students overwhelmingly perceived peer review to be beneficial, and the opportunity to participate in peer review resulted in a significant improvement in the quality of work submitted for assessment. Students who benefited most from peer review were those of below-median performance, and the magnitude of benefit was related to the degree to which students engaged with the peer review process. Our study confirms that participation in peer review can lead to important improvements in performance and learning outcomes.

We examine student peer review, with an emphasis on formative practice and collaborative learning, rather than peer grading. Opportunities to engage students in such formative peer assessment are growing, as a range of online tools become available to manage and simplify the process of administering student peer review. We consider whether pedagogical requirements for student peer review are likely to be discipline-specific, taking computer science and software engineering as an example. We then summarise what attributes are important for a modern generic peer review tool, and classify tools according to four prevalent emphases, using currently available, mature tools to illustrate each. We conclude by identifying some gaps in current understanding of formative peer review, and discuss how online tools for student peer review can help create opportunities to answer some of these questions. (Contains 2 tables.)