Counseling Interests Among Entering Black Freshmen Over a Ten-Year Period

The counseling interests of entering Black freshmen in 1984 and 1994 were investigated using the "University New Student Census" (UNSC), an annual survey administered during the freshman orientations at the University of Maryland. Ninety (1984) and 265 (1994) Black freshmen responded to two UNSC items that assessed their interest in seeking help for their educational/vocational (EV)and emotional/social (ES) concerns. The results suggested that (1) EV counseling was preferred over ES counseling; (2) males and females had similar counseling interests, and (3) interest in seeking EV counseling was consistently higher than interest in seeking ES counseling among Black students entering in 1984 and 1994. Conclusions were discussed in terms of the need for student professionals to market services that meet the needs and interests of Black students.