College Mental Health Checklist: 10 Essentials for a Healthy Semester
- Jul 11
- 7 min read
College is a period of exciting opportunities, but also of challenges and stressors that may cause new mental health problems or exacerbate existing ones.
According to the 2024–2025 Healthy Minds Study, which included 84,735 students from 135 colleges and universities, 45 percent of students screened positive for depression or anxiety. Thirty-seven percent reported moderate-to-severe symptoms of depression, and 33 percent reported moderate-to-severe symptoms of anxiety. Twenty-eight percent screened positive for a possible eating disorder, 11 percent reported suicidal thoughts during the preceding year, and 27 percent reported at least one form of non-suicidal self-injury. A positive screening result is not the same as a diagnosis, but these findings show how common significant mental health concerns are among college students. Read the Healthy Minds Study report.
Effective help is available for these concerns. Some problems may also be prevented, or their impact reduced, when students recognize their needs early and make mental health a priority.
As a psychiatrist who has worked with college students for over 25 years, I have supported many young people during the transition from high school to college and, later, from college to their first jobs or graduate programs. Before starting a semester, students often make checklists of things needed for a dorm or off-campus apartment. I also recommend creating a mental health checklist.
Below are ten mental health essentials to consider before the semester begins. In subsequent posts, I will discuss several of them in more detail.
1. Build healthy habits and stay organized
Healthy habits and organization help create a sense of internal stability and provide the mental framework needed to function under stress. The transition to college brings a new environment, a changing schedule, and new intellectual, emotional, and social demands. Predictable daily routines can reduce unnecessary stress and make these demands more manageable.
Choose one calendar or planning system and use it consistently. Enter your classes, assignments, appointments, medication refills, meals, exercise, and other important commitments. Schedule a brief weekly review to look ahead and make adjustments.
If you have not done so already, begin practicing your basic routine before the semester starts. It does not have to be perfect. A simple routine that you can maintain is more useful than an elaborate one that you quickly abandon.
2. Protect your sleep
Regular, sufficient sleep is one of the pillars of mental health and well-being. Sleep supports attention, learning, memory, emotional regulation, and brain development. The human brain continues developing into the mid-to-late twenties, making sleep particularly important during the college years. Learn more from the National Institute of Mental Health.
Unfortunately, poor sleep is common among college students. Research suggests that approximately 60 percent report poor-quality sleep, while an even larger proportion experience insufficient sleep. Irregular schedules, late-night studying, social activities, caffeine, and a noisy dorm environment can all contribute. Read more about sleep among college students.
Establish a reasonably consistent wake time, protect enough time for sleep, and discuss sleep expectations with your roommate early. Consider bringing earplugs, a sleep mask, or another simple tool that makes your sleeping environment more predictable. If insomnia, excessive sleepiness, or a severely delayed sleep schedule persists, discuss it with a health professional rather than trying to compensate indefinitely with caffeine.
3. Eat regular, nourishing meals
Nutritious meals at regular times are a foundation of physical and mental health. Long periods without eating can worsen fatigue, irritability, anxiety, and difficulty concentrating.
Before the semester starts, identify several realistic meals and snacks that will be available when you are busy. If you have food allergies, dietary restrictions, or a history of disordered eating, learn what resources are available through campus dining and health services.
Preparing and eating a meal while intentionally anchoring your attention to the present moment can also become a mindfulness practice. When meals are shared with others, they provide an opportunity for connection. Use regular meals to nourish your body, reinforce a daily routine, practice mindfulness, and spend time with other people.
Significant changes in eating, weight, body-image concerns, or fear surrounding food should be addressed early.
4. Make physical activity part of your week
Regular physical activity supports mood, sleep, concentration, learning, and brain health. It can also provide structure and a healthy way to manage stress.
Exercise does not need to be intense or competitive to be helpful. Find an activity that matches your needs and personality, whether it is a varsity or club sport, strength training, swimming, dancing, cycling, or a contemplative walk through a park.
Put the activity into your schedule rather than waiting until you “have time.” Even brief and regular activity is usually more realistic than an ambitious routine that cannot be maintained during busy weeks.
5. Plan for social connection
College provides a unique opportunity for a rich social life, but being surrounded by people does not automatically prevent loneliness. Meaningful relationships usually require repeated contact, initiative, and time.
Before the semester begins, make a short list of clubs, research activities, cultural organizations, religious communities, sports, or interest groups that match your interests and identities. Attend several introductory meetings, but avoid committing to so many activities that you become overwhelmed.
For many students, learning is more effective when it involves interaction with another person. Look for study partners or form a small study group. Try to identify at least one person you can contact when you are having a difficult day.
When attending parties, consider your safety and the safety of others. Go with someone you trust, make a plan for returning home, and remember that healthy social interactions depend on respecting personal boundaries.
6. Spend time in nature
Even during a busy semester, set aside regular time for a walk or run in a park, or a hike or picnic with friends. Time outdoors can reduce stress, interrupt repetitive thinking, and restore attention after long periods of studying.
This does not need to become another demanding goal. A short walk between classes, eating lunch outside, or studying in a green space may be enough to make contact with nature part of your routine.
7. Decide how you will approach alcohol and other substances
College may bring new exposure to alcohol, cannabis, nicotine, stimulants, and other substances. These can affect sleep, anxiety, mood, attention, judgment, and the safety or effectiveness of psychiatric medications.
Think about your boundaries before you are in a social situation. Avoid mixing substances or combining them with medications without discussing the risks with a physician or pharmacist. Never use someone else’s prescription medication, share your own medication, or drive after using a substance that impairs judgment.
If alcohol or another substance begins interfering with classes, relationships, sleep, safety, or your ability to meet responsibilities, seek help early.
8. Learn about campus resources before you need them
Many colleges offer counseling, health services, accessibility services, academic support, peer-support programs, and crisis resources. It is easier to use these services if you identify them before a problem becomes urgent.
Save the contact information for your campus counseling center, student health service, disability or accessibility office, academic advising office, after-hours crisis service, and campus safety department. Find out whether appointments are scheduled online, by telephone, or through a same-day clinic.
If you are eligible for academic accommodations, do not wait until you are struggling or have missed important work. The approval process may take time, and accommodations generally cannot correct problems retroactively. I have written separately about it.
9. Arrange continued professional support
If you currently see a therapist, psychiatrist, or another health professional, make a plan for continuing care before leaving for college. Confirm upcoming appointments, request necessary refills, identify a local pharmacy, and determine what to do if symptoms worsen between appointments. Keep medications secure, particularly in shared housing, and never stop a psychiatric medication abruptly without medical guidance.
If your college is elsewhere in Michigan, telehealth may make it possible to continue seeing a Michigan clinician. If you will be physically located in another state during appointments, ask your clinician whether continued telehealth care is permitted. Telehealth rules generally depend on the state where the patient is physically located at the time of the appointment. You may need to establish care with a local therapist or psychiatrist, and their schedules can fill quickly.
With your permission, it may also be helpful to decide how your clinician, family, and campus clinicians will communicate if a serious concern develops.
10. Create a plan for difficult moments
Do not wait for a crisis to decide where you would turn for help. Write down the names of several people you could contact, the telephone number for campus counseling, and the location of the nearest urgent mental health service or emergency department.
Warning signs that additional support may be needed include persistent depression or anxiety, repeated panic attacks, severe changes in sleep or appetite, increasing isolation, missing classes, declining academic functioning, escalating substance use, hopelessness, self-injury, or thoughts of suicide.
If you are in the United States and experiencing suicidal thoughts or another mental health crisis, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. If there is an immediate danger, call 911 or go to the nearest emergency department. Learn more about the 988 Lifeline.
A checklist, not another test
This checklist is not meant to become another source of pressure. You do not need to address every item perfectly. Its purpose is to help you notice what supports your mental health, identify possible gaps, and make a plan before the demands of the semester increase.
If you are a college student or the parent of a student and would like help preparing for the transition, Great Lakes Psychiatry and Psychotherapy offers psychiatric evaluations, psychotherapy, medication management, and recommendations for academic accommodations. Appointments are available in person in Ann Arbor and by secure telehealth for students located throughout Michigan.
Best wishes for a healthy and fulfilling semester.
Jacek Debiec, M.D., Ph.D., D.Phil.
July 11, 2026
