BetterMynd’s clinical assessment is powered by the Center for Collegiate Mental Health, a global practice-research network of more than 850 college counseling centers. Our exclusive use of the Counseling Center Assessment of Psychological Symptoms (CCAPS-34) delivers personalized, data-informed care for students and provides institutions with actionable insights.
CCAPS-34 brings these benefits to the BetterMynd platform:
- Clinical efficacy - Empowering BetterMynd's network of clinicians to provide targeted care with real-time data.
- Institutional insights - Aggregated insights reveal trends among students seeking online care—often those least likely to walk into the counseling center.
Why the CCAPS-34 matters
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The CCAPS-34 is the leading assessment instrument designed specifically for college students’ mental health. Over the last 25 years it has measured seven key areas of psychological distress—including depression, anxiety, academic distress, and social connection—offering a holistic view of student wellbeing in just 2–3 minutes.
With the most updated version normed on nearly half a million students across U.S. campuses (2022–2024), the CCAPS-34 gives clinicians a benchmark for understanding each student’s experience within the broader campus context.
This means your institution benefits from:
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Consistency: Students using BetterMynd’s individual online therapy can be assessed with the same trusted tool used in campus counseling centers.
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Continuity: Aggregated insights reveal trends among students seeking online care— highlighting those whose needs are too often hidden.
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Confidence: Regularly updated CCMH norms ensure that data remains accurate and relevant for decision-making and reporting.
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Shown: View of the BetterMynd platform (counselor experience) and the CCAPS-34 student Profile Report.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is CCMH?
The Center for Collegiate Mental Health (CCMH) at Penn State is a national research center and international practice-research network of over 850 colleges and universities. CCMH’s mission is to bridge the gap between science and practice in college counseling centers.
CCMH collects and analyzes de-identified data as part of routine practice when students seek mental health treatment at colleges and universities. The information is used, in turn, to benefit college counseling centers, administrators, researchers, the public, and most importantly the students receiving services.
You can learn more about CCMH on their website here: https://ccmh.psu.edu/
What is the CCAPS-34?
The CCAPS-34 was released in September, 2009, updated in 2012, and the most recent norm updates occurred in January 2025. It is a 34-item instrument with seven distinct subscales that are related to psychological symptoms and distress in college students and incorporates the Distress Index. The CCAPS-34 takes approximately 2-3 minutes to complete, can be used as a brief assessment instrument at any point in treatment and, due to its brevity can be used for repeated measurements of clients at every session, a specific interval, or on a calendar basis.
The current CCAPS norms are based on 488,190 students seeking counseling services at institutions across the US from 2022-2024. Because of the size and diversity of the norming group, clinicians can feel confident that a scored CCAPS profile provides an up-to-date, relevant, and accurate evaluation. The CCAPS norms will be continually updated and improved as data becomes available.
How does this help students?
The CCAPS benefits students by empowering their BetterMynd mental health professional to deliver even more personalized, data-informed care.
This brief assessment – which only takes a student 2-3 minutes to complete – helps students by providing early identification of mental health needs, tracking progress in counseling, and offering personalized insights into their distress (like anxiety, depression, academics), empowering them with self-awareness, all while using large national data to benchmark their struggles against peers, making services more effective.
How does this help campus partners?
Campuses that already use the CCAPS instruments in their counseling services benefit in a number of ways. First is consistency, where students using BetterMynd’s individual online therapy can be assessed with the same trusted tool used in campus counseling centers. There is also increased continuity, where aggregated insights reveal trends among students seeking online care— highlighting those whose needs are too often hidden. Lastly, your campus benefits from increased confidence in the rigor of BetterMynd’s clinical assessment, with regularly updated CCMH norms ensuring that data remains accurate and relevant for decision-making and reporting.
And for campuses that do not use the CCAPS instruments in their counseling services, the vast majority of benefits still apply, including aggregate insights into students that are often hidden and increased rigor of BetterMynd’s approach to clinical assessment.
Will this increase costs?
No, there is no additional or increased costs to BetterMynd campus partners. The CCAPS-34 is included in your existing individual online therapy services for students and is a reflection of the high standard we set for our clinical operations.
How is individual assessment data used?
At this time, in addition to clinical interview, individual data is used to support counselor assessment of student functioning in each of the subitems of the CCAPS-34.
What happens to the data collected?
The data is visible for the student profile report and may be included in aggregate data to support program assessment by BetterMynd.
Does a student have to complete the CCAPS-34?
Students are strongly encouraged to participate in the assessment, however, it is optional.