USAO Counseling Services

Our Purpose

College life is exciting, challenging, and hopefully rewarding. The years you spend at USAO will be some of the busiest you have known and during this time you will be making decisions that will affect the rest of your life. At times you may feel that this is the best period of your life. At other times, coping with the pressures and responsibilities and dealing with stress can seem overwhelming.

The life of a USAO student is not always easy. Sometimes our students feel overwhelmed with academic, career, relationship, family and other concerns. When stress and tension build, students frequently experience physical, emotional, social or spiritual distress. If you are feeling confused, overwhelmed, stressed, anxious or not even sure how you feel, you are not alone.   We want to help you, no matter what type of difficulty you are experiencing.

The Counseling Office provides services and activities to the USAO community which promote the development of healthy lifestyles and the acquisition of problem-solving and decision-making skills. The Counseling Office is staffed by a licensed mental health professional who provides individual counseling for personal, social, family, and academic concerns. Through this, we strive to influence the positive development of students' social, emotional, intellectual, spiritual, physical, and vocational lives.

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Our Services

Counseling focuses on helping students function and develop in the stimulating and stressful environment of college and can assist with a variety of concerns.   Although most services are provided through individual appointments, our staff can offer other services as well. Our services are confidential, FREE, and are available to currently enrolled students. Office hours are generally 8am to 5pm, Monday through Friday.

Individual Counseling:

Students can meet one-on-one with a counselor to talk about their concerns, explore related thoughts and feelings, identify personal resources, and learn new skills. For some students, one conversation is all they need to make things better, while others may return for several appointments. When it appears that a student's needs would be best met by an off-campus agency, counselors also provide referrals.

Couples & Family Counseling:

Students may invite romantic partners or family members to join them in counseling to improve their relationships.

Outreach Programs:

A variety of programs is offered to further overall personal development in such areas as self-esteem, stress management, and healthy relationships.

Faculty and Staff Resources:

The Counseling Office offers a number of resources to help faculty and staff in their work with students. Consultation services are available to faculty and staff at any time during regular business hours.

Contact Information

USAO Counseling Services

Student Center, 3rd Floor

405.574.1326

erinnguzik@usao.edu