Mental health is increasingly a topic of concern and conversation on college campuses. Early in February, David Walden, Director of the Counseling Center, gave a presentation to the student assembly about the trends he has observed at Hamilton and the needs of the student body.
Shockingly, he reveals that at any one time, about a quarter of the student body is utilizing the counseling center, and that half of each graduating class will have sought help at one point or another. He explains that this is compared to the national average of 10% of the student body being in counseling at one time. Although the averages for small schools and liberal arts schools is higher, he still says that Hamilton is still “kind of on the high end still of that.”
These high numbers are due to a 152% increase in the last four or five years in students seeking help. No explanation is given as to why this has occurred. Hamilton can be dreary, difficult, and intense, but one still must wonder what is driving these figures. Certainty the college has not changed so much in just a few years. This means that the student body is perhaps simply seeking help in greater numbers, as acceptance of mental health struggles has grown. However, this doesn’t explain why the figures at Hamilton are so much higher than other small liberal arts schools. And regardless, if so many students feel the need to seek help, perhaps there is more the school can do to support the overall population.
Dr. Walden goes on to explain that the center sometimes struggles with the number of students. Although wait times are usually short, there are peaks each semester, usually around testing periods. He says that in October the wait time was 5 days at some points. “We have five therapists, two trainees, [and] one contracted therapist,” but this is still not always enough. Furthermore, students can be shifted from one therapist to another, which makes it difficult to build the relationship necessary to make actual progress.
The Hamilton administration should examine these figures, and see what changes need to be made to better support the population.