Last Wednesday the university announced that they are partnering with Joon, an online therapy company designed specifically for young adults. The university counseling center will still be offering in-house therapy for free.

“As mental health challenges rise among college students across the nation, the PPU counseling center continues to work on partnering with community organizations to help assist with the demand for therapy services to give PPU students more access to mental health treatment on and off-campus,” Cassandra Moffat, director of the University Counseling Center (UCC), said in a press release. “The counseling center recognizes that the location of the campus and transportation concerns can make it difficult for students to access care, which is why we are partnering with Joon.”

Paige Rennekamp, a sophomore early childhood education major, said that she will be looking into this online therapy service.

“Honestly it (online therapy) would just work better with my schedule,” Rennekamp said. “I think that the school does things here and there, but they just bring other people in. They don’t look into mental health. If they looked into students’ mental health, and based things off the research they found, I think it would be more productive.” 

Joon’s virtual model of care is designed specifically for young adults 13-24 through a mobile app. Students can be matched with a therapist for free at joon.com/partners/pointpark. Joon is an in-network provider with the university’s insurance partner Highmark of Pennsylvania, meaning there will be a small monthly copay. Students who do not have university insurance are encouraged to ask their provider about their coverage. For students without insurance, an initial appointment is $150, and sessions are $125 each. 

Maddie Marco, a sophomore photography major, said that a better solution would be to hire more in-house therapists.

“I feel like online therapy is not as beneficial as in person therapy, as a person who has had experience with both during COVID-19,” Marco said. “At this point, there are so many waitlisted for therapy, they should hire more therapists.” 

Chaze Correa, a sophomore dance major, said she had a hard time getting seen in the UCC last year, ending up on the waitlist for a long time. 

“I think they should have done this sooner, but better late than never,” said Correa. “Leadership has been a rotating door here so I can understand that setting things in place like this can be hard.”

The University of Pittsburgh is also partnered with Joon. 

To learn more, visit the University Counseling Center or email them at [email protected].