Editor’s note: AWOL grants anonymity sparingly for sources with information we cannot get on the record for reasons including concerns on privacy and retribution.

A sophomore at American University walked into the Center for Well-Being and Psychological Services on Sept. 24 expecting to undergo their initial consultation. The center turned them away.

The sophomore, a student in the School of International Service who requested anonymity for privacy concerns, was suffering post-concussion-related issues and wanted to ensure their emotional well-being for the rest of the semester. They said the receptionist told them they needed to be at least 15 minutes early for the appointment. They were 14 minutes early.

According to the Center for Well-Being’s website, students are expected to arrive 30 minutes early to complete paperwork.

After the center turned them away, the sophomore said the staff didn’t offer to reschedule the appointment for them or find them a new date.

“This year, just the receptionist was pretty condescending, and she did not help me reschedule my appointment,” the sophomore said. “And that was super discouraging as someone who was trying to get mental health support. It felt like she just sort of brushed off my sort of concern.”

A couple of days after leaving the Center for Well-Being on Sept. 24, they tried to reschedule their appointment. When they logged into the center’s online portal, they saw a three-week wait for the next available slot. They said they scheduled their new appointment for the next open date, which was Oct. 20.

The sophomore was one of two AU students who told AWOL they experienced scheduling delays while trying to seek services at the Center for Well-Being in recent semesters.

The Center for Well-Being was created in 2022, when the university merged the Counseling Center and the Health Promotion and Advocacy Center, according to an August 2022 announcement on AU’s website. The center offers a multitude of services, including therapy, crisis intervention and peer health education programming, according to the announcement.

One in five adults in the United States lives with a mental illness, according to the National Institute of Mental Health. According to results of the 2025 National College Health Assessment, about 18% of students reported moderate or severe psychological distress. Data collected by Penn State University’s Center for Collegiate Mental Health showed that between 2009 and 2015, the number of students seeking help at campus counseling centers increased by almost 40%.

At AU, some students are questioning whether the Center for Well-Being has the capacity to meet their needs.

Senior Sara Shibata said she’s used the center’s individual therapy services since her junior year. This semester, she said she was unable to schedule a session after her initial consultation because of the center’s lack of availability.

“I did another consultation for this semester, and they didn’t have enough times or enough people for me to see during the week, so they just gave me a resource to go to over the weekend,” Shibata said.

On Oct. 5, there was one open appointment for an initial consultation within the next two months, according to the portal on that date. As of Oct. 10, there were 12 open initial consultation appointments. Seven of those spots were filled by Oct. 13, according to AWOL’s tracking of initial consultation appointment availability on those days. On Oct. 29, there were five slots available, all of which were on Nov. 19.

Elizabeth Deal, AU’s vice president and deputy chief communications offi- cer, declined interview requests with four Center for Well-Being staff because they were unavailable. Deal wrote in a statement she emailed to AWOL that the center aims to balance providing accessible care, maintaining service quality and preventing counselor burnout.

“It’s a tough balance to strike,” Deal wrote. “Therefore, the Center focuses on remaining flexible and proactive, building steps into the clinical system that allow us to respond to shifting demands and challenges.”

Deal wrote that the center planned to schedule more initial consultation appoint- ments during the first half of the semester to accommodate the greater number of on- going therapy appointments in the second half of the semester.

Deal wrote that the average wait time for an initial consultation this semester is 1.49 business days. She wrote that was because of the recent addition of online appointment scheduling, which students can use to schedule an initial consultation up to three weeks in advance. Deal wrote that the average wait time for an initial consultation in the 2023-2024 academic year was 3.88 business days, while the national average wait time in university counseling centers was 4.26 business days.

The effectiveness of AU’s well-being resources

When students have been able to secure an appointment with the center, their experiences with its services have been varied.

Senior Jasmin Padayao said she’s had consistently positive experiences with the center and has used its individual therapy services since her sophomore year. She said her relationship with her therapists felt genuine, and they effectively connected her to external resources.

“I think the two therapists who I’ve seen there from sophomore year till now are really qualified, and their approach to individual counseling is also really good,” Padayao said.

Senior Maria Serpa reached out to the center during their first year at AU, but later switched to an off-campus resource after the center didn’t prove to be a suitable fit. They said the center’s approach addressed the symptoms of their mental health concerns rather than the source.

“What they said to me was, like, very rudimentary, and, like, I’ve heard it a million times before, and it was not helpful,” Serpa said.

The center employs five staff psychologists, six staff clinicians, two victim services advocates, two fellows and two doctoral interns, five of whom have doctorate-level degrees, according to the center’s staff webpage. It offers six to eight weekly individual therapy sessions per year, according to the webpage for its psychology services.

Padayao said she wishes the center had more licensed psychologists, who, she said, are a benefit of off-campus therapy services.

“I would prefer it to be all just licensed psychologists because I feel they have that level of expertise that, say, social workers, don’t have,” Padayao said.

Shibata said she was paired with a staff member who was still in training during her initial consultation. Compared to her counseling experience at AU, she said her relationship with her therapist from her semester abroad felt more professional. Shibata said her counseling experience abroad involved therapy techniques that were more effective in encouraging her to talk about her mental health.

“After each session, I felt relieved, and at the AU therapy sessions, kind of felt more like I was talking to a friend, and I didn’t feel like there was a weight lifted off of my shoulders after each therapy session,” Shibata said.

A switch to off-campus resources

The SIS sophomore said they started looking at off-campus resources because they said they believe the center is so overwhelmed that the caseload is affecting the quality of its services.

“At this point, I’m thinking, are they overloaded enough that they’re actually able to manage these students and clients that they have?” the sophomore said. “I just don’t believe that.”

According to a 2023-2024 survey by the Association for University and College Counseling Center Directors, 12.5% of non-trainee clinical positions and 10.6% of all non-trainee positions in college counseling centers experienced turnovers during that year due to low salary and work conditions. The survey consisted of responses from 381 counseling center directors across the United States. The study found that about 50% of the counseling centers reported encountering challenges in recruitment.

Despite its higher cost, the sophomore said their off-campus therapy has been more helpful than the center’s services. They said the off-campus counseling has been more useful in evaluating their needs and determining their next steps in supporting their mental health.

According to its website, the center provides referrals for students seeking off-campus mental health support. Among the off-campus services AU recommends is Mantra Health, a national telehealth platform that partners with universities across the country to provide digital mental health services to students. AU collaborates with Mantra Health to provide students a variety of resources from self-guided self-care courses to immediate emotional and crisis support, according to Mantra’s website. After completing a questionnaire, students receive resources tailored to their specific mental health needs.

Shibata said the center referred her to Mantra Health when her availability didn’t align with the center’s schedule.

“I was disappointed that I couldn’t do an in-person session with AU CWB, but I understand that it doesn’t align with my schedule, and I have very low availability so I’m okay with doing the Mantra ones over the weekend, but it does suck,” Shibata said.

Natasha Coco Benitez, the wellness program manager for AU’s faculty and staff, said while the decision to use telehealth platforms is a personal one, their instant accessibility is useful for those waiting for in-person support. She also emphasized the value of exploring other online resources, such as podcasts and influencers with legitimate credentials and professional degrees. Benitez encourages students to explore these resources by reviewing their ratings and getting to know the hosts.

“What action steps do they [say] get you already rewiring and thinking about things differently?” Benitez said. “And that way, when you do get called for your appointment, maybe your nervous system has relaxed a little, you have some of their tools, because anybody who strictly relies on therapy that’s just not it. That’s not enough.”

Noting that timely, in-person therapy is important, Benitez said there are many other ways students can look after themselves outside of therapy. She said she encourages students to use small self-care strategies, like going for a walk, eating a nutritious meal and practicing meditation.

“Maybe your therapy is waking up and not even glancing at your phone when that alarm goes off,” Benitez said. “You spend the first 15 minutes of your day phone-free, having a cup of tea, breathing, looking outside at the sunshine, watching something funny.”

Benitez said it’s important for students to have a community in which they can be vulnerable and find support. She said having support while students are waiting for professional services can help them manage their mental health issues, especially during a nationwide shortage of counselors.

“Loneliness is a tremendous epidemic, feeling like it’s just you,” Benitez said. “So having a community to reach out to: a group of friends, an organization, a club. Having, like, two to three strategies that you can go to to help you with whatever it is that you’re dealing with while you’re waiting to see an actual professional, because that can take time.”

This article was originally published in Issue 37 of AWOL’s magazine on November 17, 2025. You can see the rest of the issue here.

Edited by Kyle Galvin, Kate Kessler, Stevie Rosenfeld, Will Sytsma, Caleb Ogilvie and Kalie Walker.