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The Healthy Minds Study - Student Survey

The Healthy Minds Network’s annual web-based survey study examining mental health, service utilization, and related issues among undergraduate and graduate students.  Since its national launch in 2007, HMS has been fielded at over 530 colleges and universities, with over a half million survey respondents.

HMS Interest Form

Ready to enroll your college or university? Fill out our interest form and a member of our team will reach out!

2023-2024 Questionnaire

View the 2023-2024 HMS questionnaire.   

2023-2024 Participation Guide

This guide provides an overview of the study and explains each step from enrollment to data collection and reporting.  It also provides information about and links to our study documents.

HMS FAQ for Students

Have questions about participating as a student? Check out our FAQ!

Overview of the Healthy Minds Study

HMN is now enrolling colleges and universities for participation in the Healthy Minds Study (HMS) during the 2023-2024 academic year.  HMS is an online survey study of students, available for implementation at all types of post-secondary institutions, including U.S. and international four-year colleges and universities as well as community colleges and technical schools. 

Using validated measures, HMN’s survey research provides a  detailed look at the prevalence of mental health outcomes, knowledge and attitudes about mental health and service utilization.  HMS emphasizes understanding help-seeking behavior, examining stigma, knowledge, and other potential barriers to mental health service utilization.

By enrolling your institution in HMS, you are joining a group of post-secondary institutions dedicated to understanding and addressing issues related to students’ mental health through scientifically rigorous research.

Our goal is for HMS data to be used to inform policy and practice at post-secondary institutions. HMN data can be used to:

  • Strengthen grant applications (e.g., SAMHSA Garrett Lee Smith grants)
  • Advocate for mental health services and programs on campus
  • Evaluate existing programs (e.g., reductions in stigma following a major campaign)
  • Assess need for programs and services (see an example of the economic case data deliverable)
  • Raise awareness of mental health and campus resources
  • Make comparisons with peer institutions

If you have questions or concerns that are not addressed in the Participation Guide or would simply prefer to learn about participation from one of our team members, please contact us at [email protected]

Survey Structure

The Healthy Minds Study consists of three core modules, which are included in all survey administrations:

  • Demographics
  • Mental Health Status
  • Mental Health Survey Utilization/Help-Seeking

HMS has a number of elective modules, noted below. The availability of these modules will depend on the size of your school and cohort participation. For more detail, please see the Participation Guide and Questionnaire linked above.

  • Substance Use
  • Sleep
  • Eating and Body Image
  • Sexual Assault
  • Overall Health
  • Knowledge and Attitudes about Mental Health and Mental Health Services
  • Upstander/Bystander Behaviors
  • Mental Health Climate
  • Climate for Diversity and Inclusion
  • Academic Competition, Persistence and Retention
  • Resilience and Coping
  • Financial Stress
  • Student Athletes
  • Peer Support
  • Public Safety and Policing

Campuses may add up to 10 custom questions to the survey.  Our research team is experienced in survey design methodology and can provide guidance as needed in the creation of custom questions. 

Data Reporting

Your institution’s data deliverables are designed to facilitate the translation of mental health research into practice.  In order to make the research as useful as possible, the HMN team provides participating institutions with numerous ways to examine their data.  All participating institutions receive access to the following data deliverables.

 

  • The initial report (abridged example here) is provided two weeks after your survey closes. It consists of response frequencies to each item on the survey presented in the form of bar graphs and tables. This report includes items in elective modules and custom questions, as utilized.

     

  • The clean data set consists of de-identified student responses to survey items. These data are provided in multiple formats (e.g., SPSS, Stata, and CSV). Institutions receive students’ responses to open-ended survey questions in spreadsheet format.  The HMN team also provides access to a comprehensive codebook which details variable names assigned to each survey item.

     

  • The customized school report (example here) includes graphs and tables illustrating key survey findings from the three core modules.

     

  • The customized national comparison report (example here) consists of tables comparing the national sample to your school’s results from the three core modules.

     

  • The economic case memo (example here) is a brief customized memo summarizing how data can be translated to an economic case for student mental health services and programs.

     

  • The interactive data interface allows institution contacts to log in to a secure server to further explore their data and generate visualizations. It is accessed through the Healthy Minds Data subpage of this Healthy Minds website. Selected subgroups of interest can also be examined. The data is usually available the summer following your survey administration. Occasionally, access may be delayed if the HMS team’s capacity is strained. This tool is available as operated by the HMS team; it is not included in the research agreement as a deliverable.
Participating Institutions

Below is a list of post-secondary institutions that have participated in HMN’s survey studies through 2023-24.