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International student use of university health and counselling services

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Abstract

A large sample of international students attending an Australian metropolitan university provided data concerning use of university health and counselling services—their perceived need for help, resultant help-seeking, satisfaction with help given, explanations for not seeking help when in need, and variables that predicted help-seeking. Using as criterion the individual’s perceived need for help, we found students were under-utilizing both health and counselling services. Those who did seek help evaluated their experiences positively. The gap between need and action is a concern. Students explained failure to act in terms of insufficient seriousness of problems, lack of information about services and, to a lesser extent, doubts and discomfort about the services. Contrary to views commonly expressed in the literature, student perceptions and responses showed few differences based on cultural background. Within-person variables played a stronger role than culture in accounting for students’ help-seeking decisions.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Post-compulsory Education and Lifelong Learning, Faculty of Education, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC, 3010, Australia

    Jean Russell

  2. Academic Services (Health, Counselling and Disability Services), The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia

    Garry Thomson

  3. Key Centre for Women’s Health in Society, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia

    Doreen Rosenthal

Authors
  1. Jean Russell
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  2. Garry Thomson
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  3. Doreen Rosenthal
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Correspondence to Jean Russell.

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Russell, J., Thomson, G. & Rosenthal, D. International student use of university health and counselling services. High Educ 56, 59–75 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-007-9089-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-007-9089-x

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