Studying the Issues of Mental Health in College Students and Mental Health Accessibility

 Alexandra Agosta, Verrazzano Class of 2022, completed major in Social Work 

In my research, I learned about and explored the barriers in college counseling services for current college students, from the students’ perspectives.
Through interviews it was found that many students were unaware of the counseling services provided to them on their campus, and participants shared their experiences on the issue. I was able to receive many recommendations on behalf of the students on how they believe the issue needs to be addressed and what needs to be done to prevent mental health issues.
As a result, I gained an understanding of what causes the barriers and became aware of how they might impact individuals in college.
To overcome these barriers, colleges need to first address the issue, then provide better advocacy and programs, advertise available services in a more effective way, and eliminate stigmas or change the mindset of ideas surrounding mental health issues on their campuses. The study proved that there is a need that has to be accounted for in order for mental health awareness to be present on college campuses, as well as college counseling services to be more effective for the well-being of the students.
Researchers may want to further explore the gaps in mental health awareness on college campuses or explore what are the best ways to receive input from students to help colleges address the issue of mental health awareness on campuses. This may lead to further research on how to decrease the number of students experiencing mental health issues and how to make a positive change in the community.
Lastly, researchers may consider using random methods when selecting their sample group to avoid any biases from occurring during the research process.