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Published by Diversion Books
Distributed by Simon & Schuster
Table of Contents
About The Book
A Senior University Psychiatrist and TED Speaker Gives Students and Families the Knowledge, Skills, and Confidence to Identify, Solve, and Prevent the Common Pitfalls of the College Years
In her New York Times op-eds, Mathilde Ross, MD charms parents with down-to-earth perspective, empowering messages, and wry wit. Now, with How to Thrive at College, Ross distills the lessons from her two-decade career in college mental health, clearing up public confusion on the subject of mental health on campus.
By inviting readers behind her office door at Boston University–to sit with students, as she meets with them over the course of a calendar year–her book:
- Illustrates the major forces that impact the mental health of young people. Some are obvious and some are not; some are downright funny; most are getting no attention in the media.
- Restores confidence for those parents doing it right. If you’ve been a decent parent for 18 years, the reward is knowing your adult children can handle whatever life throws at them.
- Nudges the public discussion of mental health in a more helpful direction, by increasing understanding and offering pragmatic solutions, as opposed to fanning the flames of anxiety.
College is a rewarding time to learn and develop into an adult. How to Thrive at College will be an evergreen guide to students embarking on “the best four years” of their lives, and for their nail-biting parents at home.
In her New York Times op-eds, Mathilde Ross, MD charms parents with down-to-earth perspective, empowering messages, and wry wit. Now, with How to Thrive at College, Ross distills the lessons from her two-decade career in college mental health, clearing up public confusion on the subject of mental health on campus.
By inviting readers behind her office door at Boston University–to sit with students, as she meets with them over the course of a calendar year–her book:
- Illustrates the major forces that impact the mental health of young people. Some are obvious and some are not; some are downright funny; most are getting no attention in the media.
- Restores confidence for those parents doing it right. If you’ve been a decent parent for 18 years, the reward is knowing your adult children can handle whatever life throws at them.
- Nudges the public discussion of mental health in a more helpful direction, by increasing understanding and offering pragmatic solutions, as opposed to fanning the flames of anxiety.
College is a rewarding time to learn and develop into an adult. How to Thrive at College will be an evergreen guide to students embarking on “the best four years” of their lives, and for their nail-biting parents at home.
About The Author
Mathilde Ross, MD, was educated at Harvard, Columbia, and the University of California, San Francisco. She is known for remarkable holiday candy-making and unremarkable soccer-coaching. She lives with her husband of twenty-six years, three teenagers who pretend they aren’t related to her, and an Australian shepherd who pretends that he is. She joined the counseling center at Boston University in 2008.
Product Details
- Publisher: Diversion Books (April 21, 2026)
- Length: 300 pages
- ISBN13: 9798895150979
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Raves and Reviews
“A valuable manual – if only preteens and parents would read this together, chapter by chapter.”
–Marshall Forstein, MD, Psychiatry Residency Training Director, CHA, Harvard Medical School, 2002-2021, Associate Professor of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School
"How to Thrive at College promises to provoke a needed change in the conversation about mental health on college campuses. And this is Dr. Ross as her colleagues see her - in the break room, with her feet on a chair and a pencil behind her ear, telling stories that are relatable to everyone. These are the kind of stories that make you late to your next meeting.”
–Judy T. Platt, MD, Chief Health Officer and Executive Director, Boston University Student Health Services
“Chock full of original ideas and refreshing perspectives, it will be an invaluable read for anyone headed to college or hitting bumps while there, and for the adults in their lives supporting them along the way.”
–Sharon Jacobs, MD, Associate Director of Psychiatry, Boston University Student Health Services
“A cheat sheet to a happy life! In the most entertaining, whimsical and compassionate manner possible, Thilde Ross breaks down the endless stream of complicated and contradicting instruction on how to succeed in the world.”
–Meghan Sanzari, Director of Case Management, Boston University Student Health Services
“As a college professor and mom of a high-achieving teenager daughter, this was the book I didn’t know I needed. Through bite-sized stories about her patients, Dr. Ross provides a peek at the inner workings of an adolescent mind. And I love that much of her advice to them is commonsense.”
–Elizabeth Bucar, Professor of Religion and Dean’s Leadership Fellow at Northeastern University
“In our age of anxiety, this book’s wisdom meets the moment: let’s treat the sources of the problem and build resilience once again in our kids. Ross explains how with empathy and wit.”
–Elaine Dimopoulos, parent and award-winning children’s author
“A valuable manual – if only preteens and parents would read this together, chapter by chapter.”
–Marshall Forstein, MD, Psychiatry Residency Training Director, CHA, Harvard Medical School, 2002-2021, Associate Professor of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School
"How to Thrive at College promises to provoke a needed change in the conversation about mental health on college campuses. And this is Dr. Ross as her colleagues see her - in the break room, with her feet on a chair and a pencil behind her ear, telling stories that are relatable to everyone. These are the kind of stories that make you late to your next meeting.”
–Judy T. Platt, MD, Chief Health Officer and Executive Director, Boston University Student Health Services
“Chock full of original ideas and refreshing perspectives, it will be an invaluable read for anyone headed to college or hitting bumps while there, and for the adults in their lives supporting them along the way.”
–Sharon Jacobs, MD, Associate Director of Psychiatry, Boston University Student Health Services
“A cheat sheet to a happy life! In the most entertaining, whimsical and compassionate manner possible, Thilde Ross breaks down the endless stream of complicated and contradicting instruction on how to succeed in the world.”
–Meghan Sanzari, Director of Case Management, Boston University Student Health Services
“As a college professor and mom of a high-achieving teenager daughter, this was the book I didn’t know I needed. Through bite-sized stories about her patients, Dr. Ross provides a peek at the inner workings of an adolescent mind. And I love that much of her advice to them is commonsense.”
–Elizabeth Bucar, Professor of Religion and Dean’s Leadership Fellow at Northeastern University
“In our age of anxiety, this book’s wisdom meets the moment: let’s treat the sources of the problem and build resilience once again in our kids. Ross explains how with empathy and wit.”
–Elaine Dimopoulos, parent and award-winning children’s author
Resources and Downloads
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Published by Diversion Books
Distributed by Simon & Schuster
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