FAQ

It's time for a person to talk with a counselor when:
- They are starting to have feelings of wanting to harm him/herself or someone else
- Someone whom they know and trust, such as a family member, ecclesiastical leader, physician, or teacher, suggests that they talk with a counselor
- Their symptoms are interfering with work, school, relationships, or general functioning
- The situation requires more than their social support can handle
- They have already tried all that they know and things are not getting better
- They are simply tired of suffering

To begin the process, simply call our receptionist at (801) 422-7759, and they will promptly schedule a phone intake interview with one of our intake workers. Typically, this interview will be arranged within 1-3 business days from your initial call. During the interview, you'll share general information about yourself and your concerns. Additionally, our intake worker will ask a few screening questions to ensure we can provide the level of service you require. Based on the interview outcome, you may receive a referral for services in the community, or we'll schedule the first appointment at a convenient time for both you and one of our counselors from the BYU Comprehensive Clinic.

Our location is 1190 North 900 East in Provo, situated at Brigham Young University, diagonally across from the BYU Creamery on Ninth Street. Find us on the Southeast corner of 900 East and Birch Street within the John Taylor Building (TLRB). For visitor parking, the east and south parking lots are available. If you arrive before 4:00 PM, please obtain a parking pass from the downstairs receptionist to display on your rearview mirror.

September - April:
Monday 8:00 am - 7:00 pm
Tuesday - Thursday 8:00 am - 10:00 pm
Friday 8:00 am - 5:00 pm

May - August:
Monday & Friday 8:00 am - 5:00 pm
Tuesday - Thursday 8:00 am - 9:00 pm.

Individual, couple, or family therapy costs $30/session. Fees may be decreased for financial needs. Please discuss fees with your assigned therapist when you come in.
Participation in groups typically costs a one-time fee of $30 per person.
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Standard psychological assessments are $80. These tests focus on ADHD, learning disorders, and psychiatric, psychological, and personality disorders.
Neuropsychological assessments are $500. These tests focus on possible brain damage or brain malfunction in children on adults due to traumatic brain injury, stroke, dementia, concussions, etc.
More about Assessments

We accept cash, debit card, credit cards, and checks.
We are not set up to accept insurance payments, including Medicare/Medicaid. We also do not accept payments from ecclesiastical sources. However, clients may arrange to be reimbursed by their ecclesiastical leader after the client first pays the Clinic.

BYU students are currently provided individual counseling services at no charge. Assessments are not discounted for BYU students. If non-BYU spouses or dependents are to receive counseling services or are to participate in groups, please discuss the fee with your assigned graduate student intern. Fees can be decreased for financial need. Free counseling is also provided to full-time BYU students through the Counseling and Career Center in the Wilkinson Center (801-422-3035).

The phones at the Clinic are not manned 24-hours a day and the student counselors are not crisis workers.
If you have an emergency and need to talk to someone immediately, call
- Utah County Crisis Line: (801) 226-4433
- Wasatch Community Mental Health Crisis Line: (801) 373-7393
- The national crisis line: 1-800-273-TALK (8255)
- 911

We request information regarding religion, education, and salary for two primary reasons. Firstly, it allows us to gain a better understanding of you as an individual. Secondly, we use this data for statistical purposes in ongoing research projects conducted by our university's professors and students. Rest assured that your information is strictly confidential and will never be used in research that identifies you personally. The demographic data helps us understand the general characteristics of our clients, which is often required during accreditation processes for our programs.

No, we do not accept clients who need us to testify in court for custody hearings or other court proceedings.

No. While Brigham Young University is run by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, we provide services to all eligible clients regardless of religion. During the initial interview you will be asked your religious preference, but this is to help us know you better.

Family Services is located in the same building, but the academic programs that provide counseling services by graduate student interns operates independently of Family Services. Information is not shared. If you wish to access services from Family Services you can call them at 801-422-7620.

The Clinic occasionally conducts research studies that require the participation of qualified individuals. Information about these studies will be posted on our website.

The Clinical Psychology Program has a limited capacity for assessments each semester, resulting in a waiting list to manage service requests. Assessment cases are assigned to students at the semester's start. When there's an available slot, individuals on the waiting list are notified based on their call date. You'll have two business days to respond; otherwise, we'll move to the next person. Being on the waiting list doesn't guarantee services, as it depends on the availability of appropriate assessors. Only after an intake interview can we determine if the required assessment can be provided. Please note that being on the waiting list doesn't make you a client or open a case. If waiting isn't an option, we encourage seeking services elsewhere. When adding someone to the waiting list, kindly specify the person's age and the type of assessment needed (e.g., learning disability, neuropsychological, AD/HD, etc.). Notably, assessments are generally not conducted during July and August.

It depends on the purpose of the assessment. To assess a learning disability, the child should be at least 6 years old. To assess for a developmental or neuropsychological disorder (brain malfunction), the child should be at least 4 years old.

If you suspect your child may have a learning disability or related concerns, our clinical psychology students can conduct psychological assessments for $80. These assessments cover attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (AD/HD), learning disabilities, and behavioral issues. For cases involving accidents or potential neuropsychological (brain) damage, a specialized neuropsychological assessment is available for $500. To request an assessment, please call our receptionist at (801) 422-7759.

Standard psychological assessments are $80. These tests focus on ADHD, learning disorders, and psychiatric, psychological, and personality disorders.
Neuropsychological assessments are $500. These tests focus on possible brain damage or brain malfunction in children on adults due to traumatic brain injury, stroke, dementia, concussions, etc.
See more information about assessments here.

We do not perform assessments for sensory integration disorder or central processing disorder. We refer requests for auditory processing disorders to the Communication Disorder Program at (801) 422-5117. The intake forms for those services can be found here.

Children are welcome if they are participating in therapy. Otherwise, parents will need to make arrangements for child care so that you can meet with your therapist without distractions. This applies to both individual and couple therapy. There is no place at the clinic for young children to be left unsupervised.

Your child must be old enough to be able to interact with the therapist. While most children who receive services are usually 5 years-old and older, it may be possible to work with a child as young as 3 years old in some forms of therapy (e.g. family therapy, play therapy). Parents are expected to participate actively in their children’s therapy and in parent training.

You and your therapist will discuss the best way to use your therapy time. Parents are expected to participate in therapy with their children most of the time.

Although you have the legal right to access your child's records, we advise thoughtful consideration before doing so. This especially applies to older children who might feel more comfortable discussing certain issues with their therapist in a confidential setting. We recommend discussing confidentiality arrangements with your therapist and your child during your initial meeting.

Your therapist will always strive to maintain the confidentiality of your discussions. However, in some instances, they may need to communicate with your parents, but they will generally discuss this with you beforehand. We recommend addressing this topic with your therapist and your parents during your initial meeting.

We provide counseling for individuals, couples, and families. We also have psycho-educational groups for individuals, couples, and parents. We also have interpersonal groups for individuals. Please click here for current groups that are available.

We work with a wide variety of clients including individuals, children, couples, and families. Since therapy is provided by graduate students, we screen individuals to ensure that the graduate student interns can provide the level of care that is needed. We do not accept individuals who need long-term therapy, who are suicidal, who are violent or who live in violent circumstances, who have alcohol or drug problems, or who have legal issues that would require the therapist to appear in court. If we don’t have the services you need, we will usually offer information about other possible treatment options in the community in the intake interview.

Counseling sessions normally take 50 minutes. You will need to come at least 20 minutes early to the first appointment to fill out required paperwork. Please come to all other appointments 10 minutes early if your therapist has asked you to complete questionnaires to track your improvement.

Meetings with the counselor usually happen once per week, but may occur more or less often based on what is mutually agreeable to you and your counselor. Counseling sessions usually last 50 minutes.

We ask that you attend all scheduled therapy sessions, but if you know you cannot make it, please call the receptionist (801- 422-7759) at least 24-hours in advance to cancel.

Therapy services at the Clinic are provided by graduate student interns in Social Work, Marriage and Family Therapy, and Clinical Psychology. The interns are supervised by faculty members who are licensed professionals.

The supervisors are licensed counselors (Licensed Clinical Social Workers, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapists, or Licensed Clinical Psychologists). The supervisors meet with the counselors at least once a week to discuss what is happening in therapy.

Counseling that deals with couples, families, or children is often handled by the student therapists in Marriage and Family Therapy. The Clinical Psychology students provide individual therapy, psychological assessments, and also occasionally couple and family counseling. Social Work students normally provide individual counseling.

Satisfaction surveys of clients indicate that the vast majority of Clinic clients are satisfied with the services they receive, would refer their friends here, and would return here for services if they needed more counseling. Graduate students receive supervision at least weekly, and can talk to their supervisor any time that there is a major concern. If you don’t feel comfortable with your counselor, please talk to him or her to see if you can resolve your concern.

We record sessions so that the supervisor can clearly understand you and can give clear and helpful feedback to your counselor on how best to help you. These recordings do not leave the Clinic. They are reviewed in the privacy of the practicum supervision that the counselor receives. Usually there are 3-5 counselors in these sessions. Clients are rarely distracted by, or concerned about, the recording equipment in the counseling rooms. Your permission to be videotaped is a requirement in order to receive services at the Clinic.

We are required by ethics and by law to not reveal your name or identifying information to anyone outside the Clinic unless there is a danger to you or others and in some other situations. Your therapist will keep a case record of the nature of your sessions as a way of providing you a high level of care. This record is confidential and is only reviewed by Clinic staff that has a need to know. We are not required to report any information to BYU offices, such as the Honor Code Office. The limits of confidentiality will be discussed at your first meeting with your counselor.

As required by state law, we must report suspected abuse of children or elderly people. If the therapist feels that the client is a danger to themselves or others, we are also required to contact the appropriate people. The limits of confidentiality will be discussed at your first meeting with your counselor.

Your counselor will invite you to discuss openly the concerns that bring you into counseling. If you feel uncomfortable at any time you should express this to the counselor.

You will decide with the counselor what you need to discuss together. The counselor may invite you to discover why you don’t want to talk about a certain issue, but ultimately it is up to you what you discuss.

Many of the student interns speak a second language. We do our best to help those who would prefer to receive counseling in their first language, but we cannot guarantee that someone will be available.