Counseling Center Frequently Asked Questions

While anyone could benefit, you should generally seek counseling if you:

• Are feeling stressed or overwhelmed
• Are noticing that you’re not functioning as well as you used to
• Are having difficulty controlling or feeling your emotions
• Need help working through an experience
• Or if you just need the perspective of a professional

Any currently enrolled UCM student is eligible for services. For relationship counseling (couples, friends, family) and group counseling, each person must be a currently enrolled UCM student.

Faculty and staff mental health needs are served by UCM's Employee Assistance Program (EAP). See UCM's Human Resources website for more information.

Because the Counseling Center doesn't provide long-term therapy and we can't prescribe medications, it's important to keep your current treatment providers or arrange for new providers in the community before you arrive at UCM. Here's a list of other options to review:

Warrensburg Area Referral List

Yes! Confidentiality and consenting to treatment are different for minors. Your counselor will discuss these things with you in detail, or you can call the Counseling Center if you have questions.

Forms for students under 18:

Special Aspects of Consent to Treatment and Confidentiality for Students Under Eighteen

Parent/Legal Guardian Consent for Psychological Treatment of a Minor at the University of Central Missouri Counseling Center

To make an appointment, please call the Counseling Center at 660-543-4060. If it's a crisis, students may walk in during business hours.

You'll complete paperwork, then meet with a counselor for 30-50 minutes.

The appointment will be focused on assessing your needs and making recommendations for your next steps.

Recommendations may include things like the brief services at the Counseling Center, referrals to off campus providers, and/or connection to other campus support services.

No, you will not need to bring an insurance card or payment. You will need to know your 700# when completing your forms.

During your first appointment, you and your counselor will discuss your needs. Students are typically seen for an average of 5 sessions. If you want or need long-term therapy, you may be referred to an off-campus provider.

The Counseling Center provides short-term therapy for individuals, couples/partners/family/friends/other relationships, and group counseling. 

The center is staffed by licensed professionals (psychologists, licensed professional counselors, licensed clinical social workers or counselors in training under supervision).

Counselors can help with a variety of concerns, including anxiety, depression, self-esteem, adjusting to a new environment, relationships, stress, identity and coping with traumatic events.

While all of the counselors are generalists, they each have unique training backgrounds in a variety of treatment modalities, including solution-focused therapy, acceptance and commitment therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, dialectical behavior therapy and EMDR. 

Your information is kept confidential and will not be shared without your consent. Your parents, instructors, housing staff, advisors nor anyone else will know you came to the Counseling Center without your written consent. There are some exceptions to confidentiality that will be discussed during your first appointment.

No. Counseling Center staff cannot prescribe medication but can refer you to an off-campus provider. You can also visit the University Health Center, contact your insurance company to find in-network providers, or consult with your primary care doctor.

To receive permission for an emotional support animal (ESA), you must have: 1) a documented disability and 2) a recommendation that an ESA is a reasonable accommodation for that disability. A specialized evaluation is necessary to establish these two facts. The Counseling Center does not provide this type of evaluation and cannot provide the documentation needed for an ESA.

A good place to start would be an appointment with the Office of Accessibility Services in the Elliott Student Union, Room 222, phone number 660-543-4421.

Most frequently, documentation of a disability is obtained from one of your health service providers from whom you have been receiving treatment for some time. Otherwise, you may need to seek a provider who does evaluations for the purpose of disability determinations.

Below are some options in the Kansas City metropolitan area for professionals who could do evaluations regarding the need for an ESA:

Ochester Psychological Services
816-561-9494 

Dr Dan Clairborn
913-438-2100 

KC Care Health Center
816-753-5144  

The Counseling Center may write letters for Accessibility Services. Please discuss this further with your counselor.

The Counseling Center does not routinely provide letters of excuse unless you missed class due to a conflicting appointment. Students who have legitimate reasons for excuse should consult the Student Experience and Engagement office about the appropriate procedures. That office is in Administration 214, and the phone number is 660-543-4114.

Counseling Center staff does not have the power to hospitalize students or kick them out of school. A counselor may require a student, who poses a serious risk of harm to self or others, to be transported to a hospital for a psychiatric evaluation, but it's the hospital’s decision as to whether or not the student needs to stay there. If the hospital feels the student is not an immediate danger, they will not require them to stay. This means that students we see who are hospitalized have been evaluated twice: once by the Counseling Center and once by the hospital. This makes it very unlikely that someone would be mistakenly admitted to a psychiatric hospital when they didn’t really need to be there.

Suicide is a leading cause of death among college students. Mental health professionals have a legal and ethical duty to protect individuals who are at risk of harming themselves or others. It is important to remember that just because a person doesn’t want to be in a hospital does not mean they don’t need to be there.

For crises during business hours, call the Counseling Center at 660-543-4060 or walk in to our office in the Administration building, Suite 102. Students are seen for an emergency session in the order in which they arrive.

For a crisis outside of business hours:

• Call the UCM Crisis Support Line: 660-543-8008
• Call the Compass Mental Health Crisis Line: 1-888-237-4567
• Call 911,
• Go to the closest Emergency Department

Faculty, staff, friends, family, and others can be very concerned about a student's wellbeing and want to talk to a professional about what to do or how to refer them for counseling. Our professional staff is available during business hours for consultation regarding the welfare of UCM students. Simply call 660-543-4060 and indicate you want to consult with a counselor. 

When referring a student for counseling, let the student know you are concerned about them and encourage them to make an appointment. If the student is willing but scared, you can initiate the call and put the student on the line to set up the appointment. You could also offer to walk over to the Counseling Center with the student if they prefer. Reassure the student that counseling services are professional, confidential, and helpful.

Counseling Center staff are trained to be sensitive to and respectful of individual differences, including the specific concerns of students with regard to gender, racial/ethnic, cultural, religious, age, sexual preference/orientation, and socioeconomic issues.