This qualitative study was conducted in a small international liberal arts university in Lithuania. The research involved 7 participants with diverse artistic backgrounds who described how they used art to cope with stress throughout their undergraduate studies. To address the problem of students' well-being, this study aimed to explore how engagement in arts affects students' welfare. To gather information, the researchers conducted semi-structured in-person interviews. The students shared how using different art forms affected their academic performance, experience at the university, individual perception of life events, and general satisfaction with life. The thematic analysis of the transcribed interviews revealed three emerging themes: art bringing positive emotions into students’ lives, art as a form of therapy, and the interplay of art with other coping strategies. Firstly, when art is used as a coping strategy, it brings positive emotions of relief, joy, and calmness into students' lives. Secondly, different art forms helped students self-reflect, observe their self-growth, distract themselves from everyday stressors, and cope with academic challenges. Third, in addition to arts, students named other factors such as social support, the comfort of the environment, and the sense of integral need to engage in arts, that affected their stress-coping strategies. These findings emphasize the potential of integrating art-based practices into educational settings to help students enhance their well-being. In addition, the study aims to inform educators and psychologists about the therapeutic nature of art in promoting undergraduate students' welfare and the benefits of using art-based techniques in educational settings.

Keywords: Education, well-being, art, stress, students, qualitative.