Behavioral Health and MSW Applicants

U.S. colleges and universities have identified a recent surge in behavioral health issues among their student bodies. Social work educators and scholars have expressed concerns about student behavioral health issues, given their potential impact on their professional functioning. There is, however, relatively little empirical evidence of this issue. This study begins to fill this gap by exploring how issues of behavioral health are managed in the MSW admissions process. This empirical investigation is lodged in the larger conceptual literature on student behavioral health and addresses legal, ethical, and professional tensions and implications for best practices.