The Bureau of Study Counsel also sees students with more serious disturbances, Ducey says, but takes a somewhat different approach in treatment.

"We tend not to use diagnosis here," Ducey says. While he asserts that the bureau sees students with "as serious and difficult problems as UHS does," he says, "We're not oriented towards labelling those problems."

But one junior in Adams House, speaking on condition of anonymity, says that he found the Bureau's approach "off-putting" for being even as clinical as it is.

"I was really shocked when I first went in for counseling," says the junior. "I wanted very practical suggestions about note-taking and time management. And the counselors at the bureau ask you how studying makes you feel."

The different mental health resources at Harvard work well with each other, directors say. They refer students to each other, consult with each other and discuss counseling strategies.

"Students often come to both the bureau and Mental Health Services, or to the peer counseling groups and the bureau. It's sometimes useful to get help at different places," Ducey says.

Students who direct, and consult with, the peer counseling groups say that these services have a unique appeal, especially for those who are unsure about seeking counseling.

"We at Room 13 are peers. We're Joe Blow or Jane Blow from your section," says Brian T. Kim '93, co-director of Room 13. "It's easier for students to talk to us...We're closer to student problems."

The Adams House junior, who talked to Contact--which counsels students on issues of sexuality and sexual orientation--agrees that talking to peers can be easier.

"It was such an obviously caring, safe environment. I felt really good about coming out and about the issues we examined at Contact," he says.

"I was surprised by the high level of counseling that comes from a peer group. I went in with a lot of preconceptions," he says.

In addition to the student element, Kim points out another advantage of peer counseling groups: late-night schedules.

"During the day, students are busy. But at night, peer groups come into play--it's a big time for students to call in," Kim says.

However, peer counselors do not establish extended relationships with those who contact them, Kim says.

"We're not there for long term, one-on-one counseling. We're a one-time deal. We don't want people calling in regularly," Kim says. For longer-term counseling, peer groups refer students to professional sources, he says.