Online IOP for College Students and Emerging Adults in MA & VT

At the Austen Riggs Center, we take the same attentive, personalized approach to the patient admission process as we do to your voluntary treatment once you’re here.

Therapist and patient chatting during a treatment session

Steps in Our Admission Process

Our step-by-step admission procedures help ensure the likelihood that you will benefit from voluntary treatment in our open setting. After discussing the required commitment in time and money, we move on to the in-person admission consultation, almost always held on the day of admission.

Gather Information

We gather relevant clinical and medical information necessary to determine if you are likely to respond well to the Riggs experience.

Discuss the Riggs Difference

We explore the implications of our voluntary, open setting, where each patient develops an alliance with clinical staff and takes the lead in their own treatment.

Consider the Cost

We review with you (and anyone else responsible for payment) our fee structure, payment policies, health insurance coverage, and if applicable, financial assistance program.

Admission Consultation

After answering your questions along the way, we arrange the in-person admission consultation, which about 90% of the time results in an offer of admission.

Admission Consultation

The final step in our admission process is a three-hour process that includes a tour of the Riggs campus and discussions concerning all aspects of the Riggs experience.

At the in-person admission consultation, you and your family take a patient-led tour of our campus. You meet with the admissions officer while family members speak with a social worker. Then you, your family, and the admissions officer talk things over. About 90% of the time, we offer admission at this point. If not, the admissions officer outlines the reasons and may recommend another treatment option.

The Patient Waiting List

Prospective patients are placed on our waiting list after our director of admissions determines that Riggs is a strong clinical fit, pending an in-person admission consultation. This follows a careful review to ensure our intensive, psychodynamically informed treatment model—within a therapeutic community and fully open setting—matches the individual’s needs.

Wait times vary and typically range from one to several weeks. We recognize that waiting can be difficult, particularly during periods of distress, and we strive to be transparent and supportive throughout.

For some individuals, the waiting period can serve a constructive clinical purpose, especially in working toward maintaining sobriety or managing self-destructive impulses with existing supports. Expectations around sobriety or stabilization are not fixed; they are discussed individually to support patient authority and active participation in treatment decisions, helping patients arrive better prepared for the work at Riggs.

Our admissions team remains available during this time to provide updates on status, timing, and next steps, and we encourage ongoing communication with prospective patients and referring clinicians.

What to Bring?

Patients and their families often ask about what Riggs supplies and what they should bring. You’ll find essentials here such as linens and towels, toilet tissue, bar soap, and more. Some former patients have compiled a helpful list of suggested items you may wish to bring.

Getting Started at Riggs

Taking the First Step

If you are considering voluntary treatment at Riggs for yourself or a family member, please contact Admissions for more information. Referring Clinicians: If you are considering referring a patient to Riggs, please contact Admissions with any questions, or to begin the process.

Speak with Admissions

If you’re ready to take the first step toward recovery at Riggs, please contact us.

800.517.4447

Financing Your Stay

Among the most important considerations for patients and their families is the cost of voluntary treatment at Riggs. Our all-inclusive fees vary according to the program, length of stay, and intensiveness of services provided. We will always communicate with you honestly, openly, and clearly about financing your stay at Riggs.

Treatment Cost

People We Treat

At Riggs, we welcome adults (aged 18 and up) from across the country and around the world who seek a self-directed behavioral treatment approach to help them return to a more satisfying life. Our intensive, voluntary residential treatment is for people who are not in acute crisis, but for whom outpatient treatment just isn’t enough.

Learn More