Reports results of a survey to assess the impact of CalMHSA's investments in mental health programs at California public colleges and estimates the return on investment in terms of student use of treatment, graduation rates, and lifetime earnings.

Payoffs for California College Students and Taxpayers from Investing in Student Mental Health

J. Scott Ashwood, Bradley D. Stein, Brian Briscombe, Lisa Sontag-Padilla, Michelle W. Woodbridge, Libby May, Rachana Seelam, M. Audrey Burnam

ResearchPublished Dec 10, 2015

Reports results of a survey to assess the impact of CalMHSA's investments in mental health programs at California public colleges and estimates the return on investment in terms of student use of treatment, graduation rates, and lifetime earnings.

Key Findings

  • The percentage of students in California's public universities and community colleges who were receiving treatment for mental health issues increased 13 percent during the final year of CalMHSA's investment in prevention and early intervention (PEI) programs.
  • The study predicts that the increase in students receiving treatment will lead to an additional 329 students graduating due to receiving mental health treatment.
  • Based on a benefit-cost analysis, the societal benefit of the increase in treatment and the corresponding decrease in dropouts is estimated to be as high as $56 million for each year of CalMHSA's investment in PEI programs, a result of expected increased lifetime earnings for additional graduates.
  • Assuming the increase in treatment is entirely due to CalMHSA's investment, the estimated net societal benefit for California is $6.49 for each dollar invested by CalMHSA in PEI programs.
  • Among community college students who experienced greater need for mental health services and had access to fewer on-campus mental health resources than university students, the net benefit is estimated to be $11.39 for each dollar invested.

Author Statement

At a time of increased public attention to the mental health needs of college students, we believe these findings are meaningful: They show that efforts to change the conversation about mental health on campuses and to enable faculty, staff, and students to better identify and support struggling students can lead to increased wage employment and tax revenues. This may help policymakers put investing in such efforts into perspective.

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RAND Style Manual
Ashwood, J. Scott, Bradley D. Stein, Brian Briscombe, Lisa Sontag-Padilla, Michelle W. Woodbridge, Libby May, Rachana Seelam, and M. Audrey Burnam, Payoffs for California College Students and Taxpayers from Investing in Student Mental Health, RAND Corporation, RR-1370-CMHSA, 2015. As of October 5, 2024: https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RR1370.html
Chicago Manual of Style
Ashwood, J. Scott, Bradley D. Stein, Brian Briscombe, Lisa Sontag-Padilla, Michelle W. Woodbridge, Libby May, Rachana Seelam, and M. Audrey Burnam, Payoffs for California College Students and Taxpayers from Investing in Student Mental Health. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation, 2015. https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RR1370.html.
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