If you are interested in joining any of these groups, please complete our Request for Services form  and email it to wellness@gc.cuny.edu (please include a picture of your student I.D.) or via our Virtual Drop-Off Service.  You may also submit your request in person on Tuesdays 11-3 and Thursdays 9-2 in room 6422.

An individual screening with group facilitator(s) is required. You must be a registered student of the Graduate Center or Craig Newmark School of Journalism to be eligible to join.​

 

 

Asian Graduate Student Academic Support Group

Tuesday afternoons via Zoom

Being an Asian-identified graduate student can be a unique experience for a variety of reasons. If you are an Asian international student, you may be grappling with a vastly different culture and academic setting. You may be asking yourself – how do I interact with the faculty? How do I make friends and network?  What does critical thinking even mean?  Being an Asian-American, you may notice yourself ruminating about certain interactions, wondering if they were racially charged? You may be feeling physically exhausted or emotionally fatigued. You may feel isolated or alone and want to seek support.
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For many Asian graduate students, recent events have exacerbated existing challenges and posed entirely new obstacles within their graduate programs. For example, fear, anxiety and anger may now be present for some due to the anti-Asian discrimination and assaults exacerbated by COVID-19. You may find yourself feeling isolated and questioning how you will be able to navigate this journey alone! ​This group is an academic support group designed to offer Asian-identified students the space to process thoughts and feelings, get feedback and support on individual and collective experiences, develop organizational skills and self-care strategies, all while building community.
Space is limited—please send in your request soon.

 

Group co-facilitators: Tingyun Tseng, M.A. and Yasmine Awais, LCAT, Clinical Fellows

 

 

Academic Support Group for Black Identified Students

Mondays or Wednesday afternoons via Zoom

 

Being a Black-identified graduate student can be a disorienting and marginalizing experience. Have you been feeling physically exhausted or emotionally fatigued? Are you having trouble concentrating or finding it difficult to maintain your academic workload? Do you notice yourself ruminating about certain interactions, wondering if they were racially charged? Do you ever have the feeling that you do not belong in your graduate program?

 

Additionally, for many, the heightened focus on race and race relations over the past year has exacerbated existing historical challenges posing increased obstacles to navigate within graduate school. You might find yourself feeling isolated and questioning how you will be able to navigate this journey alone. This group is an academic support space designed to offer Black-identified students the space to process thoughts and feelings, get feedback and support on their experiences, develop organization skills and self-care strategies, all while building community.

 

Group co-facilitators: Elisa Cameron-Niang, LMHC and Gabriella Robinson, M.A., Clinical Fellows

 

 

Grief Support Group

Monday afternoons via Zoom

The Grief Support Group is for graduate students who have lost a loved one in recent years and would like a supportive space to grieve. We know how hard it can be to carry on with your many roles and responsibilities after a major loss. Setting aside time to grieve with others who understand can help you heal. In the group, you will be invited to speak about your loved one (at your own pace), about the impacts of the loss and about navigating the broad range of feelings and physical sensations that can be present. There is no one right way to grieve and we will honor the range of ways that each member is journeying through their loss. While there are many kinds of losses that bring up grief, this group is specifically for those whose loved ones have passed away. If you want to find out whether this group could be a good fit for you, please request services at the Wellness Center indicating your interest in the group. One of the group co-facilitators will reach out to you to schedule a time to meet.

Group co-facilitators: Arielle Shanok, PhD, Deputy Director of Wellness Center for Student Counseling and Erzulie Coquillon, JD, MA, Clinical Fellow

 

 

First-Generation Graduate Student Support Group

Mondays 11am-12:15pm via Zoom

 

Congratulations! You’re the first in your family to go to graduate school. And yet…

• Do you feel like you’re the only one who doesn’t get how academia works?
• Are you doubting yourself? Or are you feeling conflicted about being here?
• Does your family not understand the pressures of being a grad student? Do you ever feel guilty for being here? Embarrassed?

 

If so, you are not alone.  Navigating graduate school can be complex.  This group is meant to provide a space for first-generation graduate students to support each other and to share their feelings and experiences.

 

Group co-facilitators: Dr. Inez Strama, Supervising Clinical Psychologist for Student Counseling and Erzulie Coquillon, JD, MA, Clinical Fellow

 

 

Awareness of Self & Others: An Interpersonal Process Group

Wednesdays 10-11:30am via Zoom

• ​​​​Are you struggling to communicate authentically with those around you?
• ​Do you feel disconnected from others? Lonely?
• ​Do you put others’ needs ahead of your own?

If you answered YES to any of these questions, then this group might be for you! This is a unique opportunity for honest (& sometimes challenging) exploration of personal and interpersonal process in an emotionally supportive environment. The focus is on relationships in general (i.e., trust, intimacy, boundaries) and is meant to improve self-awareness and communication.

 

Group co-facilitators: Dr. Inez Strama, Supervising Clinical Psychologist for Student Counseling and​ Molly Finkel, MDEd., Clinical Fellow

 

 

Master Thesis & Capstone Project Support Group

Tuesdays 3-4:15pm via Zoom

 

This is a weekly support group for GC Master’s students working on their theses & capstone projects. Students from all programs, at all stages in the process, are welcome. You are not alone! This is a space for you to give and receive peer support & accountability, and to learn practical strategies in navigating the process.

 

Group co-facilitators: Dr. Inez Strama, Supervising Clinical Psychologist for Student Counseling and Ms. Danielle Hazeltine, Clinical Fellow

 

 

Graduate Parent Academic Support Space

Mondays 1:45-3pm via Zoom

This is a group for graduate student parents. It’s hard enough to manage the usual stress of graduate student life. Juggling parenting and all your other responsibilities on top of that? What a challenge! You are not alone!

 

Group co-facilitators: Nicole Benedicto-Elden, PsyD, Assistant Director of Student Counseling Services, and Ms. Annie Egleson