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 The Mercy College Student Counseling Services office offers psychological evaluation and brief treatment lasting one to six sessions. Students in need of more intensive treatment are referred to local hospitals and clinics for long term psychotherapy and/or medication, if necessary.
College students come to the Counseling Services office with mental health issues including increased stress, depression and anxiety as well as concerns about their academic progress, daily living, adjustment to college, or relationships with others. Counseling can be an opportunity to talk about issues that are of concern to students with an objective person who can help them develop skills and view situations in ways that may enable them to be more effective in managing life's challenges down the road.
**This service is for Mercy College students ONLY. Full and part-time faculty, administrators, and staff may contact the Employee Assistance Program (EAP) to obtain psychological services.
Contact Information
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Locations and Hours
We are open various hours Monday through Friday during the regular school year. Appointments can be made by email, phone, or in person with Dr. Ori Shinar, Director of Student Counseling Services, or Janice Moore, Clinical Social Worker.
Bronx Campus
Room 2195
Monday - Thursday
11:00 am - 7:00 pm
Friday
By appointment
Dobbs Ferry Campus
Library, Mezzanine Level (enter library and follow blue signs to Counseling Services office)
Monday - Friday
8:30 am - 5:00 pm (please call for appointment)
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Why Seek Counseling
Counseling can simply be sharing your thoughts and feelings in confidence with a trained counselor who is objective and a good listener. This often is helpful when you have a decision to make. Sometimes counseling may help you to change your behavior in order to deal more effectively with a problem. You may become aware of strengths and potentials you can use to your benefit. At other times counseling may help by giving you certain types of information, or by teaching you new skills. Counseling may help you to see yourself and others in a different light.
This is not to say that counseling is always easy. Successful counseling may mean that you will become aware of feelings and behaviors that are not particularly comfortable or effective for you. But with the help and support of a trained therapist, you can learn to confront such feelings and behaviors so that you can make changes that will lead to a more satisfying life. Generally, people come for counseling because they want to feel better about themselves or about their relationships with others. Some specific reasons include:
- enhancing your ability to cope more effectively with stress
- overcoming feelings of depression
- improving your relationships with friends and family
- overcoming loneliness and shyness
- increasing self-confidence and assertiveness
- dealing with drug and alcohol abuse
- clarifying values and priorities
- understanding your sexuality
- dealing with eating issues
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Frequently Asked Questions
What kind of services do you offer?
At this time, our psychologist will provide psychological evaluations and referrals for individuals, couples, and families.
Do you see husbands, wives, partners or significant others?
Yes, but they are eligible for EVALUATION only in the context of family/relational issues.
Do I need a referral to make an appointment?
You may refer yourself; no other referral is needed.
How do I make an appointment?
Call the Mercy College Student Counseling Services at 914-674-7233/718-678-8775.
How much does it cost?
There is no fee for our services.
What about the groups you advertise?
We are developing a group that will meet weekly. It will be a co-ed smoking cessation group with the goal of providing state of the art techniques to help you quit cigarette smoking. If you are interested in attending such a group, call our office at (914) 674-7233 to talk with Dr. Shinar. We also work with students to develop groups they feel are needed on campus. Therefore, feel free to give us a call and suggest a specific group topic that you would like to attend.
Who knows if I've been to the Counseling Services office?
Your visits to the Counseling Services office are CONFIDENTIAL. Files are kept in our offices, in locked cabinets for the purposes of case management and statistical reporting. New York law prohibits our revealing the identities of students we see unless we feel they are a danger to themselves or others
Does my use of the Counseling Services office become part of my student file?
ABSOLUTELY NOT! Your records DO NOT become part of any file outside this office. Our counselors are bound by professional ethics and New York law to maintain the confidentiality of your contact with us.
What if I need to see a counselor immediately?
We give urgent situations the highest priority. Call (914-674-7233/718-678-8775) or come by the Counseling Services office during weekdays. If the door is closed with a "Do Not Disturb" sign, we may be briefly out of the office, teaching a class, or in session with someone. For after-hours situations, call 911 or go to your local crisis center or emergency room.
What about counseling for alcohol or drug concerns?
Although we offer evaluative services for drug or alcohol concerns, there are outside referral sources that are better equipped for dealing with such problems. If there is a need for additional services, we will make every effort to suggest a referral.
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Helpful Links
 Go Ask Alice: Go Ask Alice! is the health question and answer Internet service produced by Alice!, Columbia University's Health Promotion Program - a division of Health Services at Columbia.
Virtual pamphlets: articles written for college students by counselors at other schools. The topics covered include: assertiveness, cultural issues, eating disorders, depression, time management among others.
On-line Depression Screening Inventory: NYU Department of Psychiatry
 Mental Help Net: The Mental Help Net website exists to promote mental health and wellness education and advocacy.
Wing of Madness: General information on depression written by someone who suffers from depression and links to other sites, including an On-Line Depression Screening Inventory
Sleepnet: On-line Sleep Disorder Inventory (click on Sleep disorders then click on sleep test)
National Eating Disorder Information Center: Provides helpful resources for people who have an eating disorder themselves and a guide for family and friends.
 CampusBlues.com: CampusBlues.com can help you locate resources at your college or university and provide tools for a successful college career.
Metanoia.Org: Excellent site for those who are suicidal and those who are worried about them.
Answers to Your Questions About Sexual Orientation and Homosexuality: An informative brochure from the American Psychological Association discussing many aspects of sexual orientation including what are the origins of sexuality, issues of coming out and an opinion about the controversial "conversion therapies."
 Facts on Tap:Facts on Tap is an alcohol and drug prevention and intervention program committed to changing attitudes and expectations around youth drinking and drug abuse and helping student make successful transitions from high school to college and beyond.
Self-Help Brochures from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Counseling Center. Includes online texts of brochures on:
- Addictive Relationships
- Adult Children of Alcoholics
- Assertiveness
- Coming Out
- Committed Relationships and School
- Eating Problems and Disorders
- Experiencing and Expressing Emotions
- For Loved Ones of Sexual Assault/Abuse Survivors
- Grief and Loss
- Loneliness
- Overcoming Procrastination
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- Your Parents' Divorce
- Perfectionism
- Self-Confidence
- Stress Management
- Suicide Prevention
- Surviving Child Sexual Abuse
- Test Anxiety
- Time Management
- Understanding Depression
- Understanding Dysfunctional Relationship Patterns in Your Family
- When Your Parent Has a Mental Illness
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Local Referrals
Westchester
914-366-3600 Phelps Counseling Services
914-493-5190 Westchester Medical Center
800-964-2000 for a Psychologist in your area
914-347-4558 Family Abuse Hotline
914-345-9111 Rape Crisis Hotline
800-942-6908 No Mas Abuso
914-493-7075 Mobile Crisis Team
914-949-7699 X319 Westchester self-help Clearinghouse
914-478-0633 Echo Hills Community Counseling Center (Hastings)
914-949-6761 Westchester Jewish Community Services
914-946-0121 Mental Health Association Crisis Hotline
914-631-2022 Family Services of Westchester
Bronx and Queens
718-293-5700 Multi Cultural Counseling Services
718-918-4850 Jacobi Hospital Psych. Emergency
718-920-4295 Montefiore Hospital Psychiatric Outpatient
718-931-2600 Madeleine Borg CommunityServices/Pel.Pkwy.So.
718-960-0341 Fordham/Tremont Community Mental Health Services
718-319-7329 North Bronx Mobile Crisis Unit
718-409-1047 Pelham Bay Family Counseling
718-829-8234 Throgs Neck Family Counseling
718-796-3363 Riverdale Marriage/Family Counseling
718-463-9070 and/or 718-334-3443 Queens Mobile Crisis Teams
718 920-9829 Our Lady of Mercy Psychiatric Outpatient
718-904-4414 Soundview Throggsneck Mental Health
800-518-FULL Full Circle Health Counseling
800-621-4673 Safe Horizon
Manhattan
212-251-2520 United Way of New York
212-543-5734 NYSPI Depression Evaluation Service
800-543-3638 Lifenet
800-621-4673 Domestic Violence Hotline
212-725-7850 Blanton Peale
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Emergency Numbers in the New York Area
Westchester students may contact a 24-hour crisis hotline at 914-347-6400 or 914-493-7075.
North Bronx students may contact a 24-hour Mobile Crisis Unit at 718-319-7329.
South Bronx students may contact a 24-hour Mobile Crisis Unit at 718-579-4627.
Queens students may contact a 24-hour Mobile Crisis Unit at 718-463-9070 or 718-334-3443.
Brooklyn students may contact a 24-hour Mobile Crisis Unit at 718-245-2341 or 718-240-6377 or 718-935-7284.
Manhattan students may contact St. Vincent's Hospital at 212-604-7000.
IN CASE OF AN EMERGENCY OUTSIDE OF NEW YORK:
PLEASE DIAL 911, OR GO TO YOU LOCAL EMERGENCY ROOM OR CRISIS CENTER.
If you are feeling suicidal please call 911 immediately or call one of the local crisis numbers at this website:
New York State Office of Mental Health
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