Services

In a Crisis

In any emergency involving physical harm or a threat to a life, please call 911 (9-911 from a campus phone) or contact the University of Nevada, Reno Police Department Dispatch at 334-COPS (2677) immediately.

If you are experiencing a crisis, you can call or walk-in to Counseling Services between the hours of 8am-5pm Monday through Friday. Let the receptionist know that you are requesting a same-day emergency appointment. A counselor will briefly meet with you to determine the best course of action (scheduling an intake appointment with you, referring you to other resources, etc). 

If you are experiencing a crisis and it is after business hours, please call:

  • 911 (Emergency)
  • Counseling Services after hours crisis cell phone - 544-0492
  • 334-COPS (Non-Emergency)
  • Crisis Call Hotline 784-8090
  • National Suicide Prevention Lifeline 1-800-273-TALK [8255]
  • Hope Line Network 1-800-SUICIDE [784-2433]

What to Expect

Your first visit to Counseling Services will be a 50 minute intake appointment. We will ask you to arrive 15 to 20 minutes before your appointment time to complete the necessary paperwork for our office. During the intake appointment, you will meet with a counselor who will work with you to decide how Counseling Services can best meet your needs. This may consist of additional individual counseling appointments, couples therapy, group therapy, or you may be referred to a more appropriate resource. Services at our Center are primarily intended to help students with short-term concerns, rather than long-term, intensive psychological needs. If the fit for your needs and our Services do not match, your intake counselor will work with you to refer you to additional resources in the community.

It is important to keep in mind that the intake appointment is for gathering information that will help in deciding how Counseling Services can best meet your needs. Your counselor will review the paperwork you completed during this time and follow up with additional questions as needed. All information given in the session will be kept confidential as long as it fits within the legal limits of confidentiality. At the end of the intake session, you and your counselor will determine what services would be the most helpful for you. If you are assigned to receive our services, it may take up to a week for counseling (individual, group, or couples) to begin. If you are seen in individual therapy, your counselor may or may not be the same person you saw for your intake. Individual and couples therapy session typically last 50 minutes and group therapy session typically last 90 minutes each week.

Counseling Services is here to help students make the most of their university experience, both personally and academically. For people who have not been to counseling before, it may be a new experience to talk about yourself, your relationships, feelings, thoughts, and behaviors. Deciding to enter into individual, couples, or group counseling is a choice that you will need to make based on your particular concerns. Students who have been to counseling have indicated that the more they were willing to put into the counseling process, the more they were able to get out of it.

Common Concerns

Below is a list of common concerns that students present with at Counseling Services.  We have trained, professional staff who are able to help if you are experiencing any of the following difficulties:

  • Academic Difficulties
  • Adjusting to College
  • Alcohol and Other Drug Problems
  • Anger Problems
  • Attention Problems (ADHD)
  • Conflict Resolution
  • Couples Therapy
  • Depression and Suicidal Thoughts
  • Eating Problems
  • Emotion Regulation
  • Family of Origin
  • General Anxiety and Panic
  • Goal Setting
  • Grief and Loss
  • Health Concerns
  • Homesickness
  • Life Choices/Transitions
  • Personal Growth
  • Relationship Issues (romantic and/or family)
  • Roommate Conflicts
  • Self-Esteem
  • Sexual Assault
  • Sexual Orientation & Identity
  • Shyness
  • Social Anxiety
  • Stress
  • Test-Taking Anxiety

Individual Counseling

Students may meet with a counselor on a one-on-one basis to work through concerns about self, feelings, thoughts, behaviors, and relationships that are problematic for them. 

Group Counseling

Counseling in group offers a broad range of perspective, support, and relationships through interacting with peers and facilitators.  Group generally increases a sense of belongingness and connectedness with other individuals. Group Counseling also enhances learning about self and his/her problems in relation to others and their difficulties in a safe and mutually trusting environment.

Click here for a list of available groups.

Couple Counseling

Couple counseling enhances collaborative efforts between partners to alleviate their strains in the relationship. They will learn to see how they mutually influence each other in the relationship as well as what they contribute to the relationship to solve the problems.

Workshops and Outreach Programs

Counseling Services provide structured presentations and skills based workshops to promote coping strategies to deal with psychological distress on campus.  We also offer training seminars for students, faculty, and staff as requested. 

Consultation

Consultation is available for students about themselves or their friends as well as for concerned faculty and staff.  Consultation topics often include distressing and distressed behaviors of peers, students in class, and students who you work with.

Referrals

Counseling Services makes appropriate referrals for those students who will be better helped by the other practitioners, specialists, departments and facilities, to solve their problems. Counselors assist connecting students to other professionals and resources both on and off campus. 

Psychiatric Services

Counseling Services offers psychiatric evaluation/ consultation to determine the appropriateness of taking medication. Also, our psychiatrist provides medication management to check the effectiveness of the prescribed medication(s). 

Alcohol and Other Drug Counseling

Our licensed counselors who specialize in helping students resolve alcohol and other drug abuse concerns provide intervention, assessment, individual and group counseling/treatment services.  If appropriate, students are also referred to community service providers, and all services are under the protection of federal and state confidentiality laws.

International Students and Scholars

International students are welcome at Counseling Services!  The staff at Counseling Services is equipped with multicultural competencies and we have a designated Intercultural Therapist to be a point person to coordinate services with Office of International Students and Scholars.