Student Mental Health & Counseling

Getting Started

How do I get started?

• Call: When you call Student Mental Health and Counseling Services at 617-253-2916 during regular weekday hours, you’ll speak with one of our clinicians to briefly discuss your concerns. Then we’ll make an appointment for you with a clinician who is appropriate for your needs. 
• Let us know if you have an urgent concern: If your concern is urgent, we want to hear from you right away. You can call us at (617) 253-2916, or come in during walk-in hours, weekdays from 2–4pm.
  • When you call, you can speak with a clinician who will help you to figure out what to do next. You can call any weekday during business hours.
  • When you come in during walk-in hours (weekdays, 2–4 p.m.), you’ll meet briefly with a clinician to discuss your reasons for coming in. You and the clinician will then make a plan for next steps that might include scheduling a first appointment with one of the clinicians here or referral to an off-campus clinician.
• Reach us using telehealth: During the COVID-19 emergency, we are offering telehealth appointments for eligible MIT students. To learn if you are eligible and to schedule an appointment, call us at (617) 253-2916. You will also need to fill out this consent form and return it to the email address listed on the form. (Adobe Acrobat required for e-signature.)

Your first scheduled appointment

During your first scheduled visit, you and your clinician will discuss the concerns that prompted you to contact Student Mental Health and Counseling Services. The clinician will also ask you about any previous experiences with mental health services, some health-related questions, and some general questions about your family and upbringing. Usually, at the end of your first appointment, the clinician will have some suggestions about what to do next.

Your clinician will likely make suggestions about how often you should be seen and the kinds of services that could be helpful to you. This might include individual counseling or psychotherapy, medication, group counseling, or some combination of these options. The clinician might suggest that you receive services here, or the clinician might refer you to services outside of MIT. 

After the first appointment

If you come in for a second scheduled appointment at MIT Medical, the clinician will usually ask how you felt about your first appointment and about the treatment recommendations you discussed last time. Your clinician will want to make sure that felt comfortable during the first appointment and feel that they are a good fit for your needs. If you didn’t feel comfortable about anything during your first appointment, this is a good time to let your clinician know. 

The second appointment is when you and your clinician will probably begin to focus on current issues rather than continuing to discuss your general history. 

Let's Chat

“Let’s Chat” provides easy access to informal, free, confidential consultations with counselors from MIT Medical’s Student Mental Health & Counseling Services. “Let’s Chat”  happens every other Tuesday and Thursday at the Office of Minority Education (4-107). Meetings are brief (20 minutes), and you and your counselor will determine if additional follow-up is needed. You don’t need an appointment; just drop in or use the sign-up sheet outside 4-107 to reserve a time slot in advance. Read our FAQ for more information.

Services for employees and faculty

While Student Mental Health and Counseling Services serves MIT students, MIT offers MyLife Services as a benefit for faculty, staff, postdoc associates and postdoc fellows, and family members. MyLife Services provides up to four free and confidential counseling sessions per person, per concern, with a licensed mental health professional. If you or your family member continue to see a mental health professional for an ongoing concern after those four sessions, you may use your health insurance coverage, and copayments may be required.