What is counseling?

Professional Student Mental Health Counseling is the work of professional counselors who assist young adults, and groups with diverse needs through challenges in their life journeys. Counselors take a developmental perspective that people grow and change throughout their lives. Professional counselors understand principles of human development, psychology, mental health and change theories, and they establish effective helping relationships with people from diverse cultures. Counselors are skilled in the assessment of people and situations, diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders, and in the application of cognitive, affective, behavioral and systemic strategies to facilitate change.



Professional student counselors help clients explore their concerns and assist them in creating change. They work with clients to implement personal goals and/or advocate for system-wide changes. As professional helpers, counselors are respectful and responsive to clients and offer a safe place for people to share their experiences and to explore ways to cope. Counselors are skilled in implementing therapeutic interventions designed to help clients challenged by a range of circumstances including: trauma, depression, anxiety, stress, unanticipated life events, interpersonal discord, social injustice, worksite disruption and career issues.

Confidential individual (1:1) counseling

Individual (1:1) counseling aims to help participants to overcome stress, emotional problems, interpersonal conflicts or troublesome habits or simply help them to expand their self-awarness.

Counseling generally works with clients on the following issues:

- Living in Hungary (anomalies derived from living abroad)
- Learning difficulties/problems with school performance
- Guidance counseling/career orientation
- Parent-teacher, teacher-student relational conflict and problems
- Trauma recovery (e.g.: grief, loss)
- Feeling sad
- Eating concerns
- Feeling anxious or guilty
- Mobbing (when two or more people gang up against someone causing psychological torment)
- Relationship Issues
- Alcohol/drog/smoking reduction (prevention)
- Life Changes/Transition
- Improvement of Self-Esteem and Confidence
- Manage Stress
- Boundary Issues
- Work-life balance issues
- Searching for meaning in life (e.g.: spiritually)
- Screening for referrals to local psychiatric care or out-patient state/private MH services

How does counseling help? It could giude people to:

Understand the behaviors, emotions, and ideas that contribute to the condition. Understand and identify life problems or events (such as a major illness, a death in the family, a loss of a job or a divorce) that contribute to their illness and help them understand which aspects of those problems they may be able to solve or improve. Regain a sense of control and pleasure in life. Learn coping techniques and problem-solving skills.

The process of a counseling session:

In individual setting, one client and one counselor talk together in a private room. The effectiveness of therapy greatly depends on the client's active participation. It requires time, effort and regularity! Short-term therapy usually begins with the identification of issues and problems (during first session.) It is followed by the establishment of goals and objectives by the client. The work involves regular meetings at the same time, same place every week or two weeks. In most cases the length of the counseling process will be agreed between the client(s) and the counselor (up to 6-8 sessions per student.) What happens during a session is usually considered confidential to the people in that session.