Counseling and Psychological Services

• Individual counseling
• Crisis and traige appointments
• Couples counseling (when both parties are Otis College students)
• Group counseling and workshops
• Consultations for students, parents, faculty/staff
• Referrals to external mental health providers for open-ended therapy or specialized treatment
• Substance abuse screening and counseling
• Psychological assessment for diagnostic and treatment tracking purposes
• Outreach programming / educational events to promote wellness in the Otis College community

Making an Appointment

Appointments can be made in person at Ahmanson B05B (Lower Level) or by calling our office at 424-207-2492.

The counseling center is open M-F 9:00 AM - 4:30 PM unless otherwise posted. There is no cost to currently enrolled Otis College students for counseling. Otis College employees and alumni are not eligible for counseling services.

Counseling services are confidential with a few exceptions. Your rights and and responsibilities as a patient at the Student Health and Wellness Center and the limits of confidentiality can be found here.

For general information about CAPS’ services, you can email caps@otis.edu. Please note that we are not able to schedule appointments via email.

No-Shows:

You will be marked as a no-show for your appointment if you do not come to the appointment, or arrive 15 or more minutes past your scheduled appointment time. The no-show fee is $20, due at check-in for your next scheduled appointment.

Cancelling an appointment:

If you decide that you do not need a scheduled appointment, please cancel your appointment in person or by phone at (424) 207-2492. Email and secure messages are not acceptable forms of canceling your appointment. Appointments must be canceled 24 hours prior to your scheduled appointment time. If you do not cancel your appointment within that time frame, you will be responsible for the $20 late cancellation/no-show fee.

Students who are experiencing a psychological or emotional emergency often need immediate help and intervention. Some examples of serious circumstances include:

• Suicide or homicidal thoughts or impulses
• Sexual or physical assault
• Unusual experiences such as seeing or hearing things other people do not
• Grief or loss, such as a death in the family

Dealing with a personal crisis:

If you are in crisis and need to speak with someone right away, please come to the Student Health and Wellness Center and express this urgency. You will be scheduled to meet with a counselor as soon as possible.

In a life-threatening emergency during or after business hours, call 9-1-1 and then alert Campus Safety and Security (310) 665-6965. For further instruction on what to do in an emergency or after hours, please go here.