Services We Offer
Counseling is a collaborative process between a trained clinician and a person seeking help. Through personal interaction, students are helped to explore feelings, examine beliefs and patterns of behavior, and work toward healthy changes. At Batten University, counseling is available to all students as a free and confidential service.
Individual Counseling
Individual counseling is the most frequently requested service and the core of what we provide. Sessions can be short-term or ongoing depending on your needs. Students may refer themselves or be referred by faculty, Residence Life staff, the Student Health Center, or others who feel the student could benefit from support.
Common concerns students bring to counseling include:
- Adjusting to college life
- Relationship difficulties
- Stress and academic pressure
- Trauma and PTSD
- Anxiety, depression, and panic
- Low self-esteem and isolation
- Grief and loss
- Questions about sexuality or identity
- Alcohol and substance use
- Eating disorders
- Difficulty managing anger
- Concern for another student
This isn't an exhaustive list. If something is affecting your wellbeing or your ability to get the most out of your time here, it's worth a conversation.
Couples, Group & Educational Programs
Beyond individual sessions, students have found relational, mediation, or couples counseling helpful for difficulties with roommates, family members, or significant others. Counselors are also available as a resource for students who wish to develop support groups or awareness campaigns.
Counseling Services provides educational programs focused on mental health awareness and evidence-based skills for managing stress and building resilience. These programs are facilitated by counseling staff and are free for all students.
The Bandana Project
Batten University participates in the Bandana Project, a national suicide prevention and mental health awareness initiative. Students receive training on identifying signs of mental health distress, skills in supportive communication, and mental health resources. Those who complete the training — facilitated by the Director of Counseling Services — receive customized resource cards and a lime green bandana to identify them as mental health advocates on campus.
Off-Campus Referrals
When students need specialized services such as medication management or psychiatric evaluation, counselors will connect them with trusted off-campus professionals. Any referral is made with consideration to the student's financial resources.
Mental Health Crisis Response
In accordance with University policy specific to endangering behavior and administrative withdrawal/leave processes, individuals who display behaviors (including ideations) that endanger or intend to endanger the safety, health, or life of any person — including self — may be subject to temporary or permanent separation from the institution to ensure the wellbeing of the student and campus community.
This process is coordinated by Counseling Services and Campus Life leadership in conjunction with non-affiliated, independent, licensed mental health professionals. A student's ability to return to campus is contingent upon documented and verified ability to live in an unsupervised setting without continued danger to self or others.
