Students and institutions are grappling with issues like the surge in school shootings and trauma from suicides and sexual assault. But it’s not just the crises that have shaken this generation — it’s the grinding, everyday stresses, from social media pressures to relationship problems to increased academic expectations.
More than 60 percent of college students said they had experienced “overwhelming anxiety” in the past year, according to a 2018 report from the American College Health Association. Over 40 percent said they felt so depressed they had difficulty functioning.
Money problems are exacerbating their worries. Mental health professionals say college students have experienced financial burdens on a different scale than many of their predecessors. They grew up during the Great Recession and have seen family members lose jobs and homes. They have great uncertainty about their career prospects and feel pressure to excel academically or risk losing job opportunities.
“There’s a much more radical feeling that you’re either a winner or a loser,” said Victor Schwartz, a psychiatrist and medical director of the Jed Foundation, which helps colleges improve their mental health programming. “That’s put tremendous pressure on college students and is feeding a lot of the anxiety we’re seeing.”
As students have encountered more mental health problems, they have sought help in record numbers. Between the fall of 2009 and spring of 2015, the number of students who visited campus counseling centers increased by more than 30 percent, while college enrollment climbed just 5 percent, according to a 2015 report by the Center for Collegiate Mental Health.
“You want a college that treats you for the person you are and gives you the help you deserve,” said Katia Seitz, a 19-year-old high school senior from Houston, who has received treatment for an eating disorder. “You don’t want a college that shuts you off or feels like it’s not their responsibility to take care of you.” (...)
Nationwide, students typically have to wait almost seven business days for their first appointment with a college counselor, according to a 2017 report from the Association for University and College Counseling Center Directors. But at some colleges, it can be more than two months.
Three years ago, the counseling center at Queens College had 60 students on its waiting list (it does not require anyone experiencing a crisis to wait). Like many institutions, it began restricting the number of times students could see a counselor, from unlimited visits to 12. At the start of this semester, its waiting list was down to 30 students. But wait times can grow during peak periods.
“As we approach midterms, it feels like we’re running a crisis clinic rather than a counseling center,” said Barbara Moore, director of counseling, health and wellness. She would like to add more counselors, but doesn’t have the space.
Many colleges, however, are increasing their ranks. At least 155 counseling centers added new clinical positions from July 1, 2016, to June 30, 2017, according to the report by the association for counseling center directors. (...)
Dozens of universities have placed therapists around their campuses, making it easier for students to find help in a convenient location. The University of Michigan has 12 “embedded” counselors, including psychologists and social workers, in its schools of engineering, dentistry and pharmacy. Other schools have placed full-time counselors in the athletic department, where they help players recover from head injuries or overcome mental performance blocks.
The University of South Florida has gathered data on the students who seek mental health counseling at its main campus, in Tampa. It has found that about a quarter of them don’t need a therapist. They often just need better time-management or anxiety-reducing skills, said Rita DeBate, associate vice president for health and wellness.
To help address those issues, the university created “relaxation stations” that include massage chairs, bean bags and nap pods — chairs that cost more than $10,000 each and have quickly become the most sought-after seats on campus.
“We’d love it if we had a lazy river,” Dr. DeBate says, referring to the ultimate student amenity. But once students sink into one of those chairs, letting the white noise settle over them, it’s almost as nice, she says.
More than 60 percent of college students said they had experienced “overwhelming anxiety” in the past year, according to a 2018 report from the American College Health Association. Over 40 percent said they felt so depressed they had difficulty functioning.
Money problems are exacerbating their worries. Mental health professionals say college students have experienced financial burdens on a different scale than many of their predecessors. They grew up during the Great Recession and have seen family members lose jobs and homes. They have great uncertainty about their career prospects and feel pressure to excel academically or risk losing job opportunities.“There’s a much more radical feeling that you’re either a winner or a loser,” said Victor Schwartz, a psychiatrist and medical director of the Jed Foundation, which helps colleges improve their mental health programming. “That’s put tremendous pressure on college students and is feeding a lot of the anxiety we’re seeing.”
As students have encountered more mental health problems, they have sought help in record numbers. Between the fall of 2009 and spring of 2015, the number of students who visited campus counseling centers increased by more than 30 percent, while college enrollment climbed just 5 percent, according to a 2015 report by the Center for Collegiate Mental Health.
“You want a college that treats you for the person you are and gives you the help you deserve,” said Katia Seitz, a 19-year-old high school senior from Houston, who has received treatment for an eating disorder. “You don’t want a college that shuts you off or feels like it’s not their responsibility to take care of you.” (...)
Nationwide, students typically have to wait almost seven business days for their first appointment with a college counselor, according to a 2017 report from the Association for University and College Counseling Center Directors. But at some colleges, it can be more than two months.
Three years ago, the counseling center at Queens College had 60 students on its waiting list (it does not require anyone experiencing a crisis to wait). Like many institutions, it began restricting the number of times students could see a counselor, from unlimited visits to 12. At the start of this semester, its waiting list was down to 30 students. But wait times can grow during peak periods.
“As we approach midterms, it feels like we’re running a crisis clinic rather than a counseling center,” said Barbara Moore, director of counseling, health and wellness. She would like to add more counselors, but doesn’t have the space.
Many colleges, however, are increasing their ranks. At least 155 counseling centers added new clinical positions from July 1, 2016, to June 30, 2017, according to the report by the association for counseling center directors. (...)
Dozens of universities have placed therapists around their campuses, making it easier for students to find help in a convenient location. The University of Michigan has 12 “embedded” counselors, including psychologists and social workers, in its schools of engineering, dentistry and pharmacy. Other schools have placed full-time counselors in the athletic department, where they help players recover from head injuries or overcome mental performance blocks.
The University of South Florida has gathered data on the students who seek mental health counseling at its main campus, in Tampa. It has found that about a quarter of them don’t need a therapist. They often just need better time-management or anxiety-reducing skills, said Rita DeBate, associate vice president for health and wellness.
To help address those issues, the university created “relaxation stations” that include massage chairs, bean bags and nap pods — chairs that cost more than $10,000 each and have quickly become the most sought-after seats on campus.
“We’d love it if we had a lazy river,” Dr. DeBate says, referring to the ultimate student amenity. But once students sink into one of those chairs, letting the white noise settle over them, it’s almost as nice, she says.
by Brad Wolverton, NY Times | Read more:
Image: Zack Wittman
