New Student Resources

Please view our health forms page for detailed instructions on completing your health forms.
Health forms are due for all incoming students by July 15, 2022.

Hello, new and prospective students! We're excited to welcome you to the Caltech community. Check out our 6 steps to get to know Student Wellness Services!

1) Student Wellness Services includes:

• Health Services
• Counseling Services
• Occupational Therapy Services

All registered students pay a health fee each term, which allows access to Student Wellness Services for free, regardless of your insurance coverage. All students are required to carry health insurance, which is used for prescriptions, laboratory tests, specialty/urgent/emergency care, and other services. There may be costs involved if a student requires medication, labs or other testing, but seeing a Caltech clinician on campus is free.

2) Curious about our services? Read about services and what to expect at:

• Health Services - Medical Care and Services Available
• Your first time at Counseling Services
• Occupational therapy - it's different than counseling!

3) Get to know the staff and read our bios:

• Health Services Staff
• Counseling Services Staff
• Occupational Therapy Staff

4) Not sure what the difference between counseling and occupational therapy is? Read this:

An occupational therapist would be able to offer guidance by:

• Optimizing day-to-day habits and routines
• Creating short-term & long-term goals and maintaining accountability
• Focusing on solutions by using activity analysis to recognize dysfunctional patterns
• Developing pragmatic skills to create balance
• Collecting data — sleep, time use, calories, steps
• Focusing on individual strengths, untapped potential, and then link to action
• Evaluating holistically — focusing on many dimensions of wellness

A counselor, on the other hand, focuses their conversation on ways to:

• Recover from past traumas and cope with distress
• Explore past relationships to improve self-concept and self-esteem
• Work through underlying psychological issues that affect the ability to function
• Guiding people towards flexibility and responsiveness
• Emotional integration and regulation
• Awareness of past in order to promote insight and healing

What we have in common:

• Individualized and client-centered
• Scientifically driven, evidence-based
• Defined goals

Remember, you are not limited to one therapy or the other. You may utilize both services to address the same problem as the different frameworks and methodologies of each profession can complement each other.

5) We also run a variety of workshops and events.
Get the latest updates by following us @CaltechWellness on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram!

6) Can't make it in person? Check our resources page - it's home to many of our resources including Self-Help and Assessment Resources, Alcohol and Other Drugs, Time Management Resources, Depression and Suicide, and more.

Are you a parent? Visit our Parents page and read about after-hours care if your student is a minor.

• Questions about our policies?
  • Health policies
  • Counseling policies
• Questions about insurance?
• Questions about accommodations?
• Finding a therapist who is a good fit for you
• Preparing for a therapy appointment
• Want to get involved as a Health Advocate?
• Want to get involved as a Peer Advocate?

• Caltech ARC
• Caltech Donut