Using routine counselling-centre records to inform inclusive mental health support: student profiles in a Moroccan science college

Purpose This paper aims to examine whether routinely recorded characteristics of students who accessed a university counselling centre form distinct profiles that can inform more inclusive mental health support planning. Design/methodology/approach A retrospective analysis used 401 archival counselling records (2015–2018) from a large science college in central Morocco. Two-step cluster analysis identified profiles based on gender, age band at contact, year of study, need type, academic-track continuity and origin. Chi-square tests examined whether the retained profiles differed by repeat contact, scholarship status and prior academic distinction. Findings A three-profile solution was retained. The first profile comprised early-stage women with higher proportions of psychosocial and social/basic-needs presentations. The second comprised older, later-stage students with sustained engagement. The third comprised first-year men with a predominantly academic/study-related profile. Profile membership differed significantly by gender, age band, year of study, need type and origin, but not by academic-track continuity. Repeat contact and prior academic distinction also differed across profiles, whereas scholarship status did not. Practical implications Routine counselling-centre records can provide low-burden evidence for broader first-contact assessment, responsive triage and easier follow-up pathways. In resource-constrained higher-education settings, recognising different patterns of presentation and engagement may help services respond more equitably to students’ academic, psychosocial and social/basic-needs concerns. Originality/value By moving beyond variable-by-variable description to a profile-based reading of routine records, this study shows how service-use data can support inclusive counselling practice and mental health support planning in a university setting.