Micky Sharma, Psy.D., Director of the Ohio State University Counseling and Consultation Service, spoke to The Council of Graduate Students this afternoon about some of the most common factors affecting our academic body currently based upon their intake data.
He spoke to the multimodal services offered to OSU students to help address balancing of academics, work, and personal life in positive and healthy ways. The top issues their office teams up with students on are: 1) ambiguity of role and status, 2) securing funding and finances, 3) graduate school culture, and 4) career options post graduation, especially with COVID-19 in full swing.
Questions from Students included:
- How long is the Individual wait time to get into a session with your Clinician after your intake? About 1-2 weeks. I was pretty impressed by this, given many local private practices and non-profits have intakes with first appointments scheduled as far as 2 months out right now.
- What percentage of your Clinicians are representative of black and brown communities? How available are they and equipped to answer concerns from folks within these communities seeking support in the wake of the BLM social justice uprisings? Five of the Senior Clinicians on staff are black, per Mickey. The answer about competence was, yes, everyone is trained and welcoming, no matter their race or ethnicity. I argue this does not make a Clinician qualified to necessarily build the therapeutic rapport a BIPOC student desires.
- Can I see a list of your current Clinicians? Yes, here they are, including our new interns.
Please click here to get an idea of the resources CCS offers, including brief individual therapy, couples counseling, group therapy, and online workshops.
In the event of a severe mental health concern: CCS has services available 24/7 for students in crisis and who need immediate assistance. Call 614-292-5766 and request an urgent appointment, if it’s after hours, press 2.