Mental health support at Stanford University

Start with Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS)

Book it: Call CAPS on weekdays or visit Vaden Health Center; the front desk routes you to an initial visit, urgent care, referral help or a group. The current phone number is 650-723-3785. Open the official service page →¹

Who can use it: Undergraduate and graduate students assessed the Campus Health Service Fee; defined enrollment exceptions apply. What it costs: Brief therapy, crisis care, groups and referral support have no copay. Cardinal Care charges a $35 copay for CAPS psychiatry medication-management visits.¹

The limit that matters

CAPS describes brief therapy without a fixed public count. Enrolled students in the United States also receive up to 12 no-cost scheduled TimelyCare therapy visits per academic year. This is the fact to confirm again at intake, because staffing and campus rules can change during the academic year.¹

If you need help today

Call 650-723-3785 for same-day urgent access. After hours: The same number reaches a crisis specialist 24/7, including evenings and weekends.²

Medication and longer-term therapy

Psychiatry: CAPS psychiatry medication management is fee-for-service; the current Cardinal Care copay is $35. When campus care is too short: A CAPS Referral Coordinator and Welltrack Connect help students find outside therapy or psychiatry and understand insurance benefits.²

If you use a parent’s insurance, billing paperwork can disclose that care was used. Read the student privacy and EOB route →. If money is the obstacle, compare Medi-Cal →, sliding-scale care →, and California-wide telehealth →.

Choose the right Stanford door

You do not have to know the name of a service before asking for help. Use the route that matches what you need now.

What you need	Start here	What to say
You may hurt yourself or cannot stay safe	Call CAPS at 650-723-3785 or 911 for immediate danger	“I need urgent help now.” CAPS answers 24/7.
A first therapy visit	Call CAPS	“I want an initial appointment.” Stanford says the average wait for an initial visit has been under two business days.
A predictable virtual therapy allowance	Register for TimelyCare	Use your Stanford email. It includes 12 scheduled therapy visits per academic year and unlimited same-day TalkNow support while you are enrolled and in the United States.
Weekly or longer-term therapy	Ask for the CAPS Referral Coordinator	Say whether location, identity, specialty, price, insurance or telehealth matters. You do not have to complete CAPS therapy first.
Medication	Ask CAPS about psychiatry	CAPS medication management is separate from free brief therapy. Cardinal Care’s published copay is $35 per visit.
School of Medicine or Biosciences care	Call CAPS and ask for the Mental Health Team	The School of Medicine funds a separate team. Biosciences MS and PhD students can ask to be routed to its no-cost care.
GSB or Law School support	Ask CAPS for the school’s embedded clinician	Stanford says GSB and Law fund embedded CAPS positions. Ask whether booking is through CAPS or your school.
Gender- or sexuality-affirming care	Call CAPS and ask for a Weiland-trained therapist, or book Weiland Connects	Brief Weiland/CAPS counseling is free. Weiland also offers 30-minute confidential consultations and gender-care support.
Sexual or relationship violence	Call the Confidential Support Team: 650-725-9955	This is confidential and available 24/7. You can discuss options without first making a report.
Alcohol, drugs or recovery	Use SUPER and Cardinal Recovery	Ask for confidential clinical help, education, harm-reduction support or peer recovery support.
ADHD, autism or executive-function support	Book neurodiversity-focused academic coaching	Individual coaching does not require a diagnosis or OAE referral and has no set session count. It is coaching, not therapy.

If CAPS brief care is not enough

Ask for referral help at the first call if you already know you need weekly therapy, trauma treatment, eating-disorder care, psychological testing, intensive outpatient treatment or another specialty. CAPS has a Referral Coordinator and a complex-care team. The coordinator can help you use Welltrack Connect, compare providers and understand your insurance.

Before booking an outside clinician, ask four questions:

1. Are you in-network for my exact plan—not just the insurance company?
2. What will I owe before and after my deductible?
3. Do I need a referral or authorization?
4. If you are out-of-network, will you give me a superbill and what address or portal receives the claim?

Cardinal Care’s published in-network therapy and psychiatry copay is $35 per visit. A student with another plan must use that plan’s rules. A parent or policyholder may receive an explanation of benefits, so ask the insurer about confidential communications before the first claim.

Academic help, housing and time away

Therapy and academic accommodations are separate processes. If a mental-health condition creates a barrier in class or housing, register with the Office of Accessible Education. OAE—not a professor or CAPS—decides formal accommodations. Documentation generally must describe the condition, functional limits and requested support; it must be dated, signed and written by a qualified professional.

For housing accommodations, register with OAE and submit the Housing Accommodation Request Form. Stanford advises contacting OAE at least six weeks before the term when possible. Approval does not guarantee a particular building or room, especially for winter or spring assignments.

If you are considering a leave:

• Speak with your undergraduate adviser or graduate program before submitting the request; approval is required from each degree program.
• Ask Vaden’s Insurance and Referral Office exactly when Cardinal Care and the Campus Health Service Fee end or continue.
• International students should speak with the Bechtel International Center before changing enrollment because visa consequences can be separate from Stanford’s leave approval.
• Ask CAPS or your outside clinician for a continuity plan, medication refills and records before leaving California.

Open Stanford’s leave instructions →

Paying for care: which application fits

The funding cards below are not interchangeable. Start with the row that describes you.

Undergraduate medical and dental expense request

This is an additional-financial-aid request, not an automatic refund. You must have been enrolled when the cost occurred. The uninsured or unreimbursed expense must be from the current academic year, and Stanford considers expenses only after the first $150 for the year. Upload an invoice showing the provider, service date, charge and the amount insurance paid or denied. The result may be scholarship or loan funding, depending on Stanford’s review.

Open the undergraduate application →

Graduate Emergency Grant-in-Aid

This can reimburse documented out-of-pocket mental-health expenses that were incurred while enrolled and are not covered by insurance. The maximum is $5,000 per academic year. It is a taxable grant, not a loan. Stanford reviews financial resources and may ask for invoices, receipts, an insurance statement, a clinician’s note, and the student’s and spouse’s latest federal tax return. Students must normally be enrolled and making satisfactory academic progress; medical-leave exceptions may be considered. Professional students in GSB, Law or Medicine are reviewed with their school’s financial-aid office. Stanford says review commonly takes two to four weeks after a complete application.

Open the graduate application and requirements →

Biosciences Mental Health Support Program

This is the most direct therapy-copay reimbursement route. It covers students actively pursuing a PhD in one of the programs Stanford lists. MSTP students may apply during PhD years. Awards are prioritized in the first six PhD years, but later-year students may request help. It reimburses $50–$1,000 per academic year, subject to funding, and is taxable. Stanford requests supporting material but says not to submit diagnosis information. Applications can be submitted during the year and are reviewed on published quarterly dates. Do not submit the same appointment in two funding years.

Check the eligible programs, service dates and next deadline →

Graduate Student Aid Fund

Use this when the problem is paying Stanford’s required Campus Health Service Fee or Cardinal Care premium—not when you want repayment of an individual therapy copay. Degree-seeking graduate students may apply. The amount depends on the fee and Stanford’s financial review.

Open Stanford’s graduate support forms →

Umbrella Assistance Fund

This fund is for Stanford students and postdocs seeking gender- or sexuality-affirming support. Published materials include counseling copays and out-of-pocket mental-health costs. The published ceiling is $500 per academic year, and funding may sometimes be supplied before the expense. Application windows are limited, so check whether the current quarter’s form is open before relying on it.

Open the Umbrella Assistance Fund →

Confidentiality: know who you are calling

CAPS, Weiland clinicians and the Confidential Support Team provide confidential clinical support under their professional rules. TimelyCare is a separate health provider with its own records and privacy notice. An academic adviser, resident staff member, dean, professor or Title IX office is not automatically a confidential clinical service.

If privacy is important, ask before sharing details: “Are you a confidential resource, and what are the exceptions?” For sexual or relationship violence, the Confidential Support Team can explain choices before you decide whether to report.

Official Stanford resource set checked for this guide

Sources

• Stanford Mental Health Resources Hub
• CAPS frequently asked questions
• After-hours care
• Weiland clinical and identity-affirming care
• Sexual-violence support and confidentiality
• Neurodiversity-focused coaching
• Undergraduate medical-expense aid
• Graduate Emergency Grant-in-Aid
• Biosciences mental-health reimbursement

What to ask in the first appointment

1. What is my individual-session limit this term or year, and does intake count?
2. If I need weekly or specialized care, who starts the outside referral?
3. Is psychiatry separate, and does it require a campus or insurance referral?
4. What can I use while I am waiting: a group, same-day consultation, or virtual care?
5. Will any charge or insurance explanation be sent to someone else?

Verification record

Every campus-specific statement above was read on an official Stanford University page. Core access facts are due for re-check by 2026-11-23. A missing number is reported as “not published,” never filled from an old catalog or another campus.

Sources

1. Stanford CAPS — Clinical services, read 2026-08-25.
2. Stanford Vaden — Health Fee eligibility, read 2026-08-25.
3. Stanford CAPS — Fees, read 2026-08-25.
4. Stanford OGE — Mental Health Support, read 2026-08-25.
5. Stanford Student Affairs — Mental Health Resources Hub, read 2026-08-25.
6. Stanford Financial Aid — Graduate Emergency Grant-in-Aid, read 2026-08-25.