Mental Health Support: The Not-So-Secret Key to Academic Success
Mental health is a key piece of ensuring whole-person wellness and ensuring you can reach your goals. As a Babson student, you’ll have access to high-quality, responsive, inclusive, and flexible mental health support both on and off campus.
Counseling & Psychological Services (CAPS)
All undergraduate Babson students are eligible for CAPS services for free.
Counseling & Psychological Services (CAPS) is currently available in-person on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Fridays from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and on Wednesdays and Thursdays from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., with emergency, on-call services available during off hours.
CAPS offers consultations, assessments, short-term counseling, same-day appointments, and referrals for long-term counseling, all designed to empower you to thrive at Babson and beyond. Your interactions with CAPS are confidential and are not shared with anyone unless you provide written authorization.
Our team can support you in a number of areas.
- Homesickness and Adjustment
- Stress and Anxiety
- Race and Identity Related Concerns
- Loneliness and Isolation
- Feeling Down or Sad
- Family/Peer/Relationship Concerns
- Substance Use
- Body Image and Food Concerns
- Financial Stress
- Sexual and Gender Identity Concerns
- Grief and Loss
- Depression
- Sexual Assault
- Traumatic Events
- Self-Harm and Suicidal Thinking
- Culture Shock and Adjustment
- Impact of COVID-19
Additionally, we partnered with UWill, a leading teletherapy provider for college students, to provide additional teletherapy hours and access to licensed clinicians, a 24/7 crisis helpline, and curated wellness events. UWill serves as an extension of CAPS, expanding the care we provide to the Babson community.
Mental Health Services for the Entire Babson Community
As part of being a diverse, global campus, we understand that each member of the Babson community has their own unique experience with the world, influenced by their race, nationality, gender, sexual orientation, religion, and other protected characertistics. Additionally, global, national, and local events may make specific students feel unheard, unseen, and unsafe. CAPS is committed to affirming and providing care for all of our students who have been directly or vicariously impacted by trauma and other societal factors. We encourage our students to reach out to our services to receive the support they need.
Mental Health Promotion
A partnership between CAPS and Wellness & Prevention Services, Mental Health Promotion (MHP) gives Babson students a range of resources to help promote emotional wellbeing. These include free access to The 10 Minute Mind® daily guided mindfulness practice, sleep kits, and relaxation tools, such as coloring books, fidget sticks, and Silly Putty.
Each year, Wellness & Prevention Service puts on Fresh Check Day, a mental-health focused, stigma-reducing campus event that’s part of a larger program from the Jordan Porco Foundation. It is mainly student-led, and various on- and off-campus sponsors join Babson students for entertainment, information booths and sessions, free food, and giveaways, all to promote awareness of suicide prevention.
Mental Health Resources You Can Use Right Now
Finding and applying to colleges can be stressful. Use these mental health resources right now—before you even reach campus—to help manage your stress and support your overall wellbeing.
Off-Campus Resources
The Greater Boston area is a leader in medical care, giving Babson students access to a range of top-tier mental health services, including licensed psychiatrists, psychologists, psychotherapists, neuropsychologists, psychiatric nurse practitioners, and more. Counseling services provided by off-campus clinicians is most likely covered by your health insurance, but may include a co-pay, depending on the insurance policy.
Public Safety provides transportation to and from appointments at Colony Care Behavioral Health and Dana Group Associates. Other options include LifeStance Health and Oasis Behavioral Health Institute.
Parents’ Guide: Support Your Child’s College Mental Health
Whether you have dropped a child off at college before or are preparing to do it for the first time, you may find yourself trying to balance being supportive while also giving your student the space they need to make their own decisions.
Of course, it’s sometimes hard to discern the line between interference and support. Use this guide as a way to maintain an active and healthy relationship with your student, even at a distance.
5 Steps to Maintaining a Healthy Relationship with Your Student
Acknowledge the Stressors Your Student Will Face
Research indicates that most parents believe their student′s primary stressors will be difficult classes and poor time management. However, students cite lack of sleep, bouts of anxiety and depression, relationship issues, and the constantly changing landscapes of technology and social media as their major stressors.
Knowing the real stressors versus what you think are the stressors will help you better provide the support your child needs.
Model Strong Communication Skills
Before college, your primary goal in communicating with your child was to transfer information: to teach, direct, advise, discipline, etc. During college and after, your primary goal is to strengthen and maintain your connection to your child.
For example, you can simply text a photo or share a quote or send a weekly email about family ″news″ and celebrations—communications that do not require any response back if your student is busy.
Listen Rather than React
When your child presents you with information that is unexpected, uncomfortable, or concerning, your tendency might be to immediately respond with your reactions and opinions rather than really listening to what they are saying.
To really listen, it is important to focus on their verbal and non-verbal messages, ask questions to make sure you understand, and then respond. It′s OK to disagree, but important to respect their perspective and concerns.
Support and Guide, Rather Than Direct
Most parents, after 18 years of parenting, have perfected the ability to advocate for and intervene on behalf of their children. Now, when your child is struggling, you want to respond with empathy and offer support.
Rather than telling them what to do, or doing it for them, you want to ask them what they have done to problem-solve, and ask questions to help them think about and decide what else they can do to help themselves. Communicate confidence in their ability to manage their concern, knowing that there are faculty and staff members at Babson who can offer assistance to your child.
Recognize Warning Signs of More Serious Distress
At times, if your child′s concerns persist or are interfering in their ability to be successful at Babson, it may be appropriate to intervene. If you are concerned that your child may be clinically depressed, their anxiety is not manageable, they are isolating and avoiding social contact, or they may be considering suicide, reach out on their behalf.
For consultation, parents should call CAPS at 781-239-6200. For immediate concerns, they can call Public Safety at 781-239-5555.
A Holistic Approach to Your Wellbeing
See more ways you can take care of your health at Babson. Or, if you’re ready to apply, start your application!