Counseling Services at Miami University expects to see a longer waiting list from spring break through April than it has in previous months.
Pam Wilkins, associate director of Student Counseling Services at Miami said this is because there are a greater number of students seeking counseling services at this time of the school year.
Counseling Services started to see an increase in students seeking counseling around the beginning of midterm exams.
There are a number of factors involved, Wilkins said.
Stress about midterms, grades, breaks and going home, leaving school after graduation and relationships are the most prominent reasons for students seeking services, Wilkins said.
First-year Laura Cordonnier said she can see why more students may seek counseling during the spring semester than the fall semester.
"I think many students may seek counseling right now because this is the time of year when we have the longest amount of time in school with fewer breaks than fall semester," Cordonnier said. "Help that students could obtain at home may be sought here instead."
Wilkins agreed.
"People try to make it on their own at first and the stress builds up: eventually students realize they need professional help," Wilkins said.
Many soon-to-be graduates are anxious and frightened about what to do after college, Wilkins said.
According to Wilkins, the idea of emerging out into the real world under this economic system creates anxiety. She added counseling services sees a large range of student issues.
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"Miami is like a microcosm town of 15,000 people," Wilkins said. "The range of things we see is very wide."
Of these problems, students are increasingly seeking services for romantic relationships, but this is not the biggest concern, Wilkins said.
"Our biggest demand is from people with anxiety, panic attacks and depression," Wilkins said. "All [these issues] cause academic and social problems."
Although Miami's counseling services do not offer long term, in-depth therapy they do have emergency appointments everyday. Students in crisis are seen the same day or the next day, Wilkins said.
Students first undergo a one-on-one assessment triage where they are able to talk with a counselor. Counselors decide whether the case is an emergency or if it can be put on the waiting list, Wilkins said.
A popular alternative to one-on-one counseling is for students to participate in free group counseling, Wilkins said.
Another popular service offered by the counseling department is learning assessments and programming for ADHD and other learning disorders.
"We often find bright students did just fine in high school, they had people to help them stay focused," Wilkins said. "But now professors are expecting them to do it on their own. The disorder didn't come to play until college."
Sophomore Megan Payne thinks the transition from high school to college causes many students to turn to counseling.
"I feel many students were so used to having guidance through high school that they don't know how to handle the academic load alone and turn to counseling," Payne said.
Counseling services also deals with eating disorders, bipolar disorders and alcohol abuse assessment as well, Wilkins said.
Counseling Service's staff consists of one full time psychiatrist, nine full time counselors, three full time interns in the final stages of their PhD's in clinical psychology and three placement students.
"We're seeing as many people as possible," Wilkins said. "We get solid referrals and we're busy from the first day of school in the fall to the last day in the spring. We have had a wait list from the third week in September until spring and we're seeing students use all usable hours."
‘Usable hours' is time allotted to one-on-one assessment and student counseling.
According to Wilkins, next year there will be one additional intern and an additional placement student, which will help more students receive counseling services.
"With the budget situation as it is expansion will have to wait for the budget to have room for it," Wilkins said. "We feel very supported by Miami at Counseling Services."
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