The Better Semester
Rob Danzman is a licensed therapist who's worked with college students and their parents for over two decades. He's written two books: The Insider's Guide to Parenting: How to Solve Messy Problems and Build a Great Family and The Insider's Guide to College: Evidence-Based Tips, Tricks, and Strategies to Win the Semester. The Better Semester is an extension of his work and is all about providing info to parents of college students. Each episode if full of insights, strategies and tactics - all super actionable advice to get your struggling college student solid again.
How much is too much parenting when your kiddo heads off to school? How can college students find help when they're struggling? How should medication be handled while they're at college? How can parents coordinate with the university?
All of these and more are covered weekly.
The Better Semester
What Parents Need to Know about Counseling and Psychological Services on College Campuses
Here’s your episode description, under 3,500 characters, written to match Scott Galloway’s tone while making it appealing for parents of college students in 2025:
Episode Description
Your kid’s college has a lifeboat they probably don’t even know exists — and you’ve already paid for it. It’s called CAPS (Counseling and Psychological Services), and in 2025, it might be the most undervalued part of your six-figure higher education investment.
In this episode, we break down what CAPS is, what it isn’t, and why the math is brutal: overwhelming demand, under-resourced supply, and waitlists that stretch longer than your kid’s attention span. We’ll dive into the latest mental health data, reveal how many clinicians are actually on campus compared to the number of students in crisis, and explain why this matters for your kid’s chances of graduating.
You’ll hear:
- The CAPS Backstory: From Princeton’s early “moral guidance” days to today’s hybrid teletherapy options.
- 2025 Mental Health Reality Check: Anxiety, depression, and suicide stats that should have every parent paying attention.
- Clinician Ratios vs. Need: Why many schools have one counselor for every 2,000+ students — and what that means for care quality.
- University Case Studies: The gold standard at the University of Florida, small liberal arts success stories, and the under-resourced pressure cookers that look great in brochures but break down in reality.
- Medication Management: How ADHD meds, antidepressants, and mood stabilizers get handled (or dropped) on campus — and the questions parents need to ask before move-in day.
- Coordination with Disability Services & Faculty: How CAPS can secure academic accommodations, the paperwork your student must sign, and why professors are often the untrained first responders.
- Your 2025 Parent Playbook: A step-by-step plan for intake, releases of information, medication continuity, and making sure your student actually shows up to appointments.
The bottom line? College isn’t just an academic experience — it’s an emotional obstacle course. CAPS isn’t perfect. It’s often underfunded, understaffed, and poorly marketed. But it’s the only parachute on campus you’ve already paid for. The real question is: will your kid pull the ripcord before they hit the ground?
Whether you’re sending a freshman off for the first time or trying to help a junior who’s struggling, this episode will arm you with the inside knowledge, the right questions, and the practical strategies to make campus counseling actually work for your student.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/motivatecounseling
https://motivatecounseling.com/
https://motivatecounseling.com
