What is Counseling Like?

Some students find that an initial appointment at UCS is all that they need to explore their feelings and options.

During your first meeting at UCS, our counselors ask students to describe their current concerns and situation and gather some background information. The student and counselor then decide if additional services would be beneficial and set goals. Counseling tends to be problem-focused, eclectic and culturally appropriate. The particular counseling strategies employed vary from counselor to counselor, but each one focuses all energies on trying to help the student.

Students may feel a bit self-conscious, anxious, weak or shy at the beginning of counseling but our counselors understand that it is normal to feel uncomfortable and cautious and they try to help by providing an accepting and non-judgmental environment in which students feel at ease. The counselor's office is a safe place to talk about feelings and learning how to deal with them.

Students often meet with their counselors on a weekly, biweekly or monthly basis, depending on the needs of each student and the availability of the counselor. Sessions are typically one hour long and homework assignments may be given between sessions to gather further information and to assess the effectiveness of counseling.

Once the students feel that the issues that brought them in for counseling are no longer of major concern, they decide with their counselor how and when to end counseling.

Counseling may not always work, but most students who seek counseling believe that it has been helpful to them. When UCS is unable to provide the type of services that are needed or requested, an appropriate referral will be made to an outside agency.