Our Services

Remote Initial Consultation (IC) are available most weekdays, providing an accessible means by which students can talk to a counselor at their convenience. All students who utilize the remote consultation hours will meet with a counselor for a brief consultation to receive support, discuss concerns, and develop a plan to reach their goals.

Student should first call the Counseling Center and press “2” to speak with someone. After calling the CC and completing some brief paperwork, students will be scheduled for this brief consultation call. Students should set aside about 1 hour total for all paperwork and appointment time, but this may vary depending on the volume of students seeking services and influenced by each student’s schedule availability. Students who experience difficulty with paperwork can work with the IT department to resolve these issues or call the office for assistance.

Our goal is to schedule these remote IC appointments on the same day. It is best if students call at 9am on the day they wish to be seen, or as early in the day as possible, as our appointments fill quickly. We also request that students make sure to attend their scheduled appointments in a timely manner; otherwise, the appointment may need to be rescheduled to another day.

For students who are hesitant or uncertain about utilizing the remote IC appointment can also utilize the “Chat with a Counselor” service (an online drop-in service mental health service that offers informal and one-on-one visits for students to meet with a Johns Hopkins University Counseling Center staff member. It is not a substitute for mental health treatment, but Chat with a Counselor can assist students who have questions about mental health, want to get strategies for managing stress/academics/life, or want to find resources that fit your needs and identities.

The Counseling Center offers a variety of mental health workshops designed to teach new skills and enhance resilience and well-being. All workshops are offered free to JHU students and learners, and ongoing involvement with the Counseling Center is not necessary. Mental health workshops will be offered online through Zoom. Additional information is available on our workshops sign-up page.

Counseling groups allow students to address their concerns through engagement with others. Groups are especially effective for those interested in exploring their interpersonal style and enhancing their approach to relationships in such areas as trust, intimacy, anger, conflict, assertiveness, taking risks, and improving self-esteem. All Counseling Center groups are offered remotely and are facilitated or co-facilitated by Counseling Center counselors. Click here for more information about our group program.

Brief Goal-Focused Individual Therapy is a means by which students can explore a specific issue or address a specific mental health concern one-on-one with a trained counselor. Within this approach, the student and the counselor work collaboratively to establish a helpful and meaningful goal or set of goals that can be effectively targeted within a relatively small number of sessions. This process often involves breaking larger, more comprehensive goals, into smaller, more manageable yet also helpful and meaningful goals.

The Counseling Center does not have a specific limit to the number of sessions available to any individual student. Rather, our counselors strive to work effectively and efficiently with students seen in individual counseling. For context, it might be helpful to know that in 2018/19, the average number of individual sessions per student was just under 5 sessions, with 63% of students being seen from 1-5 sessions and 91% of students being seen for less than 16 sessions. Brief therapy appointments are typically scheduled at weekly or bi-weekly intervals, depending on the presenting concerns and counselor availability.

Due to the university mask mandate requiring all individuals to wear a mask indoors, there are two options for these appointments, depending on the needs of the student: 1) remote (Zoom) appointment or 2) in-person appointment with masks.

Psychiatric Evaluations and Medication Management services are available by one of our consulting psychiatrists when medication may assist in the treatment of a concern. At this time, psychiatric treatment is also provided either remotely or in-person with masks worn by students and our providers. Students interested in psychiatric care should contact the Counseling Center to discuss your needs, or click here for additional information.

Referral Assistance is available to students who want to seek services in the community or whose needs are better addressed by off-campus mental health providers. This includes when a student wishes to pursue ongoing open-ended treatment or when they need more frequent or more specialized services than the Counseling Center provides.

In partnership with Thriving Campus, the JHU Counseling Center offers an online database of local mental health providers: jhu.thrivingcampus.com. Thriving Campus is a search engine of mental health providers and is a resource offered to the JHU community. Thriving Campus partners with colleges and universities across the nation to provide a comprehensive list of applicable providers.

Any student interested in referrals can utilize the Thriving Campus database on their own. Students seeking additional assistance with referrals can either talk to their current counselor, or request to speak with one of our mental health case managers by calling the Counseling Center.

“Chat with a Counselor” is an online drop-in service mental health service that offers informal, confidential, and one-on-one visits for students to meet with a Johns Hopkins University Counseling Center staff member. If you have questions about mental health, want to get strategies for managing stress/academics/life, want to find resources that fit your needs and identities, come chat with us! Click here to learn more.

Counseling Center staff have put together a comprehensive list of information, resources and tools to help students manage and cope with the ongoing pandemic. PDF Document: Emotional Self-Care During Covid-19 Pandemic

In addition, student can access the Stress and Depression Questionnaire- an anonymous, online tool that generates a confidential assessment of how stress and depression may be affecting you. A JHU counselor will evaluate your responses and provide personalized feedback. You will also have the option to anonymously exchange brief messages with a counselor to learn about available resources and options for treatment at Johns Hopkins and in the community. Click here to access the questionnaire or to learn more.