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Was wondering if anyone else saw this article.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5626585/site/newsweek/

What I thought was particularly interesting re admissions is that several schools seem to be looking out for kids who may have emotional problems in college, and trying to admit those who won't. NYU apparently asks kids if they are on medication??? and the MIT adcom says they are looking for kids who are self-starters (i.e., not pushed by parents), who they believe will have less likelihood of emotional problems in college.

Of course, the info about numbers of depressed students is, well, depressing (40% of students have at some time felt so depressed they couldn't function? an "overwhelming majority of Harvard students have had mental health problems?).

By Carolyn (Carolyn) on Wednesday, August 18, 2004 - 03:10 pm: Edit

I saw it and had the same reaction as you - I kept thinking of essays that I've read from kids on this board talking about depression and/or other emotional problems/issues. The fact that adcoms at some schools are now asking about medications was chilling to me. I couldn't help wondering if a case could be made for discrimination lawsuits against some of these schools.

By Rhonda63 (Rhonda63) on Wednesday, August 18, 2004 - 03:15 pm: Edit

I had the same thought, although asking for information doesn't necessarily mean the colleges are discriminating against those students, in theory anyway.

By Emeraldkity4 (Emeraldkity4) on Wednesday, August 18, 2004 - 03:23 pm: Edit

my daughter has chronic depression /learning differences and we were upfront with colleges and feel that the option to have SAT scores not identify who has accomodations is well meaning but doesn't necessarily mean that the college who accepts that student is going to be the best fit.
We felt that while we didn't have to beat them over the head with it, that we wanted to know what resources there would be for her in college and that was hard to do if we were trying to hide her "special need" as a prep school put it in their letter. ( not hers)
I recognize that schools don't want to overwhelm their resources, but the logical solution would be to see the need and accomodate it, rather than trying to predict who will use it and shut them out.
But I suggest being upfront with the school, you may be pleasantly surprised. We certainly didn't think of Reed College as a school with learning disablity support, but my daughter had not only extra office hours with profs but an ADD coach that met with her every week to keep her on track. ( Until he moved, then she derailed ;-()
If the school starts freaking out when you ask about support that probably isn't somewhere you want to be anyway. Much better to already have something in place, than have to fight to have it added, although one of her high school classmates was instrumental in getting services at Occidental improved, it is a lot of work)

By Txtaximom (Txtaximom) on Wednesday, August 18, 2004 - 03:48 pm: Edit

My son's college asked questions about familial depression, but it was on the health questionnaire/physical form--after admission, not as a part of the admission's process. They have also sent quite a bit of literature on drinking and their support programs. I felt like they were trying to identify, or help parents identify, potential health issues and what was available at the school should the need arise.

By Rhonda63 (Rhonda63) on Wednesday, August 18, 2004 - 03:51 pm: Edit

After admission is a completely different issue, and colleges have been sending those health questionnaires for many years (I remember my sister being very annoyed at my father for insisting she put down that she gets nervous and highly stressed, lol).

Emeraldkity -- I had not thought about it from that POV.

By Emeraldkity4 (Emeraldkity4) on Wednesday, August 18, 2004 - 04:01 pm: Edit

I don't think Reed asked anything about it before admission, nor did any school, but I beleive she did write one of her essays on being diagnosed with ADD.

even though Reed does have support, they also stress personal responsibilty and if you are going to explode they aren't going to fill out your leave form for you. Any school I imagine wants kids to advocate for themselves, but some schools make it much more difficult than others.

I also suggest that you be sure that your child signs a release form so that you can recieve health information if needed. I think at some schools it has happened that students had meltdowns and worse before their parents were notified because they didn't have an explicit release form. ( and becuase the school was sthupid)

By Mom101 (Mom101) on Wednesday, August 18, 2004 - 04:47 pm: Edit

I think the fact that MIT is being sued by a family who's daughter committed suicide there, and the major publicity it has gotten, is making colleges look closer. It's a difficult problem, how do you keep an eye on every student's mental health? In the MIT case it seems clear that the school could have been more proactive, the girl had been to their mental health facility many times. But she wasn't a minor and they had no right to call the parents. I'm not sure what a school can do.

By Mimk6 (Mimk6) on Wednesday, August 18, 2004 - 11:47 pm: Edit

"But she wasn't a minor and they had no right to call the parents. I'm not sure what a school can do. "

I can't be sure about another state but in CA a therapist has a "right to warn" if they believe someone is a threat to him or herself. I have done this in my practice and I'd be surprised if this right does not exist in every state. A therapist has the right to do what he/she thinks is necessary to keep a client safe, including contacting family members.

By Bookworm (Bookworm) on Wednesday, August 18, 2004 - 11:57 pm: Edit

The MIT student case was detailed in another thread, but I don't recall which. The sad part was that her parents visited her that very weekend. I do know that each school has a student counseling center. While some schools use these centers for training clinical psychologists, MIT will fund students to see local psychologists with a lot of experience. I have looked at a few different college sites, and found this to be the standard practice these days. Any psychologist who recognizes that a student is at risk will be proactive, meaning they will do any/all of the following: immediate referral to psychiatrist, hospitalize, call parents, on student's behalf, contact appropriate school adviser.
In terms of release form, have parents received these from colleges, or do you write your own and submit it? I would suspect that a release form would include only medical conditions, not that one's child is seeking psychotherapy.

By Interesteddad (Interesteddad) on Thursday, August 19, 2004 - 01:38 am: Edit

>> I couldn't help wondering if a case could be made for discrimination lawsuits against some of these schools.

The Supreme Court does not seem particularly committed to enforcing US constitutional protections in college admissions.

By Jenniferpa (Jenniferpa) on Thursday, August 19, 2004 - 09:29 am: Edit

I also was concerned about the stated desire to "weed out" students who might be depressed. While I agree that this information should be provided after admission, and I also agree with Emerald that a school that isn't supportive in this area is probably not a good fit for a depressed child, I would suggest that those who are identified as depressed AND being treated for it are less likely to have problems than those who have not been diagnosed. Of particular concern to me is the apparent belief that by identifying students who are being medicated for depression, you are removing potential problems. As someone who has long term clinical depression, which is effectively controlled with medication, I would argue that I am better able to cope with life's tribulations simply because I am aware that I have problems in this area. I know that medication isn't the answer for everyone, but if it does work, you are simply fixing a chemical imbalance, not dissimilar to the use of insulin by a diabetic.

I would also be interested in how MIT hopes to identify self-starters. Where does parental support become parental pushing, and how do you draw the line? I would hope that this wasn't the case, but when I read that, I couldn't help thinking about the posts on this board regarding "pushy" Asian parents, and wondering if at MIT, any Asian student would be automatically suspect.