Graduate Student Mental Health: Needs Assessment and Utilization of Counseling Services

A second stressor that warrants examination is the finding on graduate students' financial stability. Financial confidence in one's ability to finish graduate school is a significant contributor to emotional well-being in graduate students. Higher socioeconomic status is generally recognized to contribute positively to mental health across ages and ethnic groups (CDC, 2004). Findings from this study corroborate those from other studies of graduate students, showing that financial stress contributes significantly to emotional distress (Nogueira-Martins et al., 2004; Toews et al., 1997).

These results also suggest that administrators should pay closer attention to the greater prevalence of self-reported mental health among women. Significantly more women than men reported having experienced an emotional problem over the previous year, and significantly more of them reported knowing a graduate student colleague who experienced an emotional problem over the previous year. These findings reinforce those from national studies of mental health needs showing that women are more likely to report mental health concerns (CDC, 2004).

The findings in this study are particularly interesting in light of Holland's theory of careers, which holds that human behavior is explained by the interaction of individuals and their environments. The theory assumes that "(1) people tend to choose environments compatible with their personality types; (2) environments tend to reinforce and reward different patterns of abilities and interests; and (3) people tend to flourish in environments that are congruent with their dominant personality types" (Feldman, Smart, & Ethington, 2004, p. 528). Holland's theory of careers suggests that graduate student academic and social well-being is a function of students' ability to find an appropriate environment. To this point, Feldman et al. found that academic environments can have an important effect on what and how students learn. The findings in this study also suggest that the expressed mental health needs by some students may reflect an inappropriate fit between themselves and their environment.

Knowledge of Mental Health Services

Knowledge of mental health services among graduate students is high but not universal. Nearly one quarter of graduate students are unaware that mental health services are provided on campus. Furthermore, graduate students are less likely to receive information about mental health services through face-to-face contact from peers or their advisors. Rather, students are more likely to seek out information themselves, from the university health center website, or to gain information through orientations or university health center flyers. Graduate students are not likely to congregate in places like residence halls or student centers and may not regularly visit their administrative program office. Therefore, an effective information dispersal strategy for graduate students would rely on multiple dispersal sources around campus and at satellite campuses, emphasizing electronic and web communications, and satellite counseling sites.