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Poor sleep is common among university students, with substantial implications for health, well-being, and academic performance. While digital health interventions show promise, many are insufficiently tailored to the students’ specific needs and preferences. This study describes the multistage development and feasibility testing of an online sleep education program for university students using a participatory co-design approach. The development process comprised six stages across pre-design, co-design and post-design phases, combining qualitative interviews, World Café workshops, iterative feedback loops, and feasibility testing. Students, researchers, and teaching experts were actively involved to ensure content relevance, usability, and acceptability. Interviews revealed a demand for practical, actionable strategies to improve sleep and highlighted barriers such as time constraints and irregular routines. World Café workshops emphasized concise and engaging formats, leading to the integration of podcasts, videos, and interactive elements. The core development team iteratively structured modules and refined content. Feasibility testing showed high acceptability, appropriateness, and feasibility of the program. The program offers a scalable, user-centred approach to promote sleep health among university students. This study advances the evidence on participatory design in sleep health education by identifying key design principles and student perspectives that can inform the development of a student-centered sleep education program in higher education.
Schmickler et al. (Wed,) studied this question.