Objective: to understand the experience regarding the coordination of university welfare programs in schools and departments of the University of Antioquia, Colombia. Methodology: a qualitative, grounded theory approach was taken to this study. University welfare coordinators of the central campus and of six regional branch offices of the University took part in this research. In-depth interviews and observation records were made. Results: tension was observed in the field of intervention programs directed by university wellness coordination offices. This tension occurs between assistentialist programs, which focus on subsidizing and addressing immediate needs such as nutrition and transportation, and the programs that aim to promote well-being as a dimension of human development and are part of the students’ training during their stay at the university. Also precarious working conditions and dissimilar direction of the interventions with different levels of implementation and scope appear. Discussion: The scope, relevance and purpose of the programs are discussed as a complement of the professionals’ training, considering the possibility of generating new proposals by recognizing what the coordinators need in order to carry out their tasks.