Meeting the mental health needs of autistic college students: a survey of university and college counseling center clinicians

Abstract

Objective University and college counseling centers (UCCCs) are a front-line support for the mental health needs of autistic students, though little is known about clinician attitudes, comfort level, and training in autism. Participants 89 UCCC clinicians were recruited via email listservs. Methods The authors developed a survey which assessed attitudes, comfort level, and training in autism. Results The majority of clinicians (82.0%, n = 73) had interacted with autistic students in the past year, and reported high levels of comfort with treating anxiety and depression. However, a smaller number reported confidence in their ability to diagnose autism. Training on autism emerged as an important deficit, as 31.5% of the clinicians denied receiving training either in their educational program or the UCCC. Conclusions In this pilot study, clinicians reported a discrepancy between self-reported levels of comfort with autistic college students and past training, highlighting continuing education as an important area for future intervention.