Student Psychological Services provides counseling and clinical services to students experiencing psychological problems that are potentially disruptive to their successful academic, interpersonal, and campus adjustment; assists students in learning new and more effective ways to cope with stress and disappointment, resolve conflicts, deal with specific problems or habits, and manage their lives; provides psychiatric interventions and medications, when necessary, to stabilize seriously distressed students; and provides consultation services to campus staff, faculty, and administrators in dealing with students who have emotional problems.

The SPS staff of psychologists, clinical social workers, and psychiatrists provides treatment for students who are experiencing a wide range of problems, from the mildest to the most severe. SPS offers a range of services including brief individual psychotherapy, crisis intervention, couples counseling, group psychotherapy, behavior modification, hypnotherapy, biofeedback, and medication. These modalities are selectively combined into individualized treatment programs for each student. A growth-oriented, proactive, life-management, and developmental approach is most commonly used.

Student Psychological Services provides outreach services to traditionally underserved student populations in support of the retention goals of the University. Prevention and education services provide students with coping strategies for the typical developmental and situational issues that confront young adults so as to prevent these issues from developing into more serious problems. SPS also offers programs for the promotion of a healthier campus environment and provides training programs for the University's graduate mental health professional programs and is accredited by the American Psychological Association as a psychology internship program.

In addition, SPS oversees Helpline-a student-run, confidential, after-hours telephone helping and referral service to students in the UCLA community who experience a crisis when no face-to-face counseling is available.