Referring a Student
Why Make a Referral
- Early intervention means rapid solutions: Often, a quick response to provide a distressed student with timely resources will ensure that the student remains successful academically. Late intervention often involves missed classes, isolation from friends and family, possible withdrawals or late drops and an overall interruption in the student’s experience.
- Connecting the Dots: Our office receives reports from all over campus. Our ability to connect your concerns with the concerns of others means we are able to provide a greater level of support for each student involved.
- We Care, You Care: Making a referral shows that you care enough to get the student the help he or she needs. It means you’re are not prepared to let a student fall through the cracks. It means that NC State is a family that takes care of its members.
- It Might Be Required: Under certain circumstances, Faculty, staff, and students are obligated to report acts of violence and other threatening behaviors. See the Campus and Workplace Violence Prevention and Management policy for details.
When to Make a Referral
Although the terms, “concerning” and “worrisome” are subjective, the following list of indicators provides some context when assessing whether a student may need additional support:
- Persistent unexplained absences
- Deterioration in quality/quantity of work
- Extreme disorganization or erratic performance
- Written or artistic expressions of unusual violence, morbidity, social isolation, despair, or confusion
- Continual seeking of special permission (extensions, make-up work)
- Patterns of perfectionism
- Disproportionate response to grades or other evaluations
- Direct statements indicating distress
- Significant change in mood
- Angry or hostile outbursts, yelling, or aggressive comments
- More withdrawn or more animated than usual
- Appears over-anxious
- Excessively demanding or dependent behavior
- Fails to respond to outreach from staff/faculty
- Deterioration in physical appears or personal hygiene
- Excessive fatigue, exhaustion;
- Erratic or disjointed thinking – skips around a lot; unable to stay focused on one topic; topics don’t align
- Noticeable cuts, bruises, burns
- Frequent or chronic illness
- Disorganized speech, rapid or slurred speech; confusion
- Substance abuse
Other Factors to Consider
- A concern expressed by another student or teaching assistant
- A student is experiencing substantial and prolonged financial or legal problems
- A sixth sense or hunch that something is wrong