Alcohol and Other Drugs

Do You! Get what you want, without what you don't.

Living Substance FreeRisk Management and Harm ReductionEmergency and Non-Emergency InterventionCounseling and SupportCampus and Community Leadership

Most students make smart and safe choices about using alcohol and other drugs.

These safe choices mean that students don't experience negative academic, physical, or social consequences. University Health Services staff work closely with Berkeley students, staff, faculty, and community partners on year-round services and initiatives that aim to reduce risk, consequences, and harm from the use of alcohol and other drugs. 

Key Strategies:

Learn more about how you can create a campus alcohol and other drugs (AOD) culture that supports all who study, live, work & play in the campus area: 

Risk Management & Harm Reduction

You can help center safety, well-being, and inclusion when you manage risks and reduce harm at student gatherings. Use our PartySafe Toolkit or become a Peer Advocate. Check out our resources for Partygoers and Party throwers >  

Emergency & Non-Emergency Interventions

Bookmark this page! Our list of resources includes contact information and tips to help you respond to emergency and non-emergency situations. Save the BearWalk number to your phone (510-642-9255) and use it next time you are out late. View the Interventions webpage > 

Living Substance Free

Don't assume everyone drinks! Uplift and support students who choose to live substance free - from housing to student organizations. Get more facts and resources about living substance-free at UC Berkeley. 

Counseling & Support 

UHS Social Services offers a range of confidential alcohol and other drug-related services, supporting a spectrum of harm reduction goals for individuals. There is no charge to get started, and all registered students can access services regardless of their insurance plan. Call for more information or to make an appointment today! View Social Services webpage > 

Campus & Community Leadership

Engage with campus and community leaders to help shape and bring widespread awareness of campus AOD expectations, education, resources, and accountability. Learn about our efforts >

Our Goals

UC Berkeley students and staff are working together to create a campus alcohol and other drugs (AOD) culture (e.g. policies, practices, programming, public information, and staffing) that supports all who study, live, work & play in the campus area. We:

  • Put well-being, safety, harm reduction and equity at center of alcohol and other drug choices
  • Recognize and respect that many chose not to use alcohol and other drugs
  • Advocate for and support students in recovery as a vulnerable population with unique needs
  • Ask all users and social/retail providers to do so in mindful and low risk ways and situations
  • Support noticing problematic behaviors and situations and addressing them in timely, effective and compassionate ways.
  • Consistently and compassionately hold students accountable for campus alcohol and other drug policies.

Resources

Drug Facts & Resources

  • Learn more about alcohol, marijuana, and other drug topics from the National Institute on Drug Abuse.

  • The Highway Code is a resource guide created by The Global Drug Survey to provide harm reduction recommendations for a variety of drugs.

  • Do you know what counts as a drink? Or the signs that alcohol is causing harm? Rethinking Drinking is a tool to help you take a look at your drinking patterns and how they may affect your health. 

  • The National Harm Reduction Coalition is a nationwide advocate for building and scaling evidence-based strategies with and for people who use drugs.

  • DanceSafe has a variety of information and resources on drugs, drug effects, and potential harm reduction strategies. Includes information on drug checking and sources for test kits beyond fentanyl testing. 

  • Trip Safe (psychedelics) and Roll Safe (MDMA) are concerned with public health and the safety of people. They do not endorse the acquisition or use of drugs outside of approved medical settings but provide tools for self-education if one is planning to do so.

  • Getting It Right from the Start collaboratively develops and test models for optimal cannabis policy (retail practices, marketing & taxation), based on the best available scientific evidence, with the goal of reducing harms, youth use, and problem use and promoting social justice and equity.

  • UNDO is a California Department of Public Health program working to bring awareness to the health risks of tobacco/nicotine and vaping and hold the tobacco industry accountable.

  • Want to quit smoking? Kick It California offers a range of services, from one-on-one Quit Coaching to text programs and self-help materials.

  • Interested in learning more about prescription drugs? The Mayo Clinic provides information about prescription drug abuse. The Higher Ed Center for Alcohol and Other Drugs includes a webinar presenting key findings from the 2022 College Prescription Drug Study.

  • Overdose Prevention Initiative supports substance use prevention programs, harm reduction tools and strategies, and more.

Campus & College Data

We draw on national college data and research sources as well as our own campus statistics to inform and guide our policies, strategies, and activities.

Campus Responsible Bystander & CA Good Samaritan Policies

  • UC Berkeley Responsible Bystander Policy:  Summary and Full policy
  • California’s 911 Good Samaritan Law (CA Civil Code Section 1714.22) protects you from arrest, charge, and prosecution when you call 911 at the scene of a suspected drug overdose. Nobody at the scene should be charged for personal amounts of drugs or paraphernalia. This law does not protect you if:

    • You are on parole/probation; it is likely still a violation

    • You have more drugs than “possession for personal use”; it is still illegal to have any amount that would suggest trafficking or sales

    • You “obstruct medical or law enforcement personnel”; it is still important to not intervene with the activities of police or emergency personnel.

Disclaimer: The information provided on these pages is not intended to diagnose, treat or provide a second opinion on any health problem or disease. It is meant to support, not replace, the relationship that exists between an individual and his/her clinician.

In Case of Emergencies

Contact Us

For any questions about the UHS Alcohol and Other Drugs program, please contact Health Promotion, Health Promotion at hpromo@berkeley.edu.

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