Free Anonymous HIV Testing
All undergraduate UCSC students are eligible for free & anonymous HIV testing provided by highly trained SHOP Peer Test Counselors. We take pride that UCSC uses student peer test counselors – one of the few HIV testing programs in the country that utilizes peer-peer test counseling.
Testing involves NO BLOOD and NO NEEDLES. We use Orasure, an oral swab test for HIV.
HIV Testing generally begins two weeks after the beginning of the quarter and ends one week before finals. This allows the Student Peer Test Counselors to establish their class schedule and cover testing slots.
Appointments for testing are available Monday - Friday from 9-12 and 1-4. To schedule an appointment for an HIV test call SHOP at 831.459.3772 or testing is available on a drop-in basis as well.
When you come for your appointment, you will go to the SHOP office at Kresge College. We are located in Building 157 on the Piazetta next to the fountain at lower Kresge (across from the College Office.
Results are returned in one week.
Should I get tested?
There is no short answer to this question. Finding out your HIV test results lets you know if you need to get treatment. Also, testing and counseling can be a good way to educate yourself about HIV and your own risk. Counseling involves talking with a trained Peer Counselor before and after taking the HIV test. You can ask questions about HIV, talk about your risk of getting HIV, and raise any concerns or fears about testing you may have. However, the question of whether or not you should be tested is not so easy.
Before being tested, it's a good idea to think about why you're thinking about getting tested. You can also talk to an HIV Peer Test Counselor at SHOP without committing to taking the test. Here are some questions to consider regarding testing:
- Do you have reason to think you might be infected?
- Have you ever had "unprotected" sex (sex without a condom or other latex barrier)--oral, vaginal, or anal?
- Have you ever had sexual intercourse (anal, oral, vaginal) in which a condom or latex barrier broke or ripped?
- Have you ever had sex with someone who was an IV drug user or had HIV?
- Have you ever had a sexually transmitted disease (STD) such as herpes, chlamydia, gonorrhea, trichomoniasis, or hepatitis?
- Have you ever had an unplanned pregnancy?
- Have you ever been sexually assaulted (raped, forced or talked into having sex when you didn't want to)?
- Have you ever passed out or forgotten what happened after you were drinking or getting high?
- Have you ever shared needles or other equipment to inject drugs or pierce the skin?
- Have you ever received a blood transfusion? (the risk is very low in the United States, but can vary in other countries)
- Did your mother have HIV when you were born?
Note: As of 2006, guidelines from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend that any sexually active person aged 13-64 be tested at least once for HIV even if that person is considered "low risk."