Background: Alaska Natives suffer one of the highest rates of suicide in the world.This represents a significant health disparity for indigenous populations living in Alaska.This research explored qualitatively the attitudes, beliefs, and experiences of Alaska Native university students who came from rural villages regarding the problem of suicide.In particular, we examined participants perceptions of the correlates and causes of the disproportionately high suicide rate in rural Alaska as well as resiliency factors that protected the participants and helped them succeed in college.A secondary aim was to evaluate the psychological impact on respondents of asking questions about suicide.Methods: Semi-structured one-on-one interviews were conducted with 19 university students who self-identified as having migrated to Fairbanks, Alaska from a rural Alaskan village.Participants were asked questions about suicide in rural Alaska in an interview protocol developed in collaboration with cultural and community experts.Interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed for analysis.Preliminary analysis was conducted using a grounded theory approach to identify emergent themes.Participants also were asked about their psychological state following the interview compared to their psychological state when they arrived for the interview to evaluate the amount of distress incurred by talking about suicide.Results: All of the 19 participants reported having lost close friends, family, or community members to suicide.Some participants had lost many close friends and family members.All participants reported having been affected by suicide.The most frequently identified risk factors for suicide included historical trauma, substance abuse, and environmental factors such as remote location, lack of access to health services, and limited recreational opportunities.The westernization of Alaska, specifically loss of indigenous cultures and languages, was considered to have a significant detrimental impact on indigenous communities and thus considered a contributing factor to various social problems including suicide.Meaningful family and mentoring relationships, specifically grandparents, were identified as important protective factors against suicide.Other resilience factors included subsistence lifestyles, meaningful community-based involvement, and an active lifestyle.Finally, participants reported a therapeutic effect of taking part in the research.All participants reported feeling the same or better at the completion of the interview than they did upon arrival.The majority of participants reported that the interview was difficult but viewed it as beneficial and important.Conclusion: Many college students from rural Alaskan villages have been affected by suicide, but have important strengths that allowed them to cope with such tragic events.Risk factors for suicide included historical trauma related to loss of culture resulting from Western influence, substance abuse, and substance-related violence.Resiliency factors included having a sense of cultural identity, community cohesion, and the influence of a supportive relationship with an adult.Participants found the process of talking to an interviewer about these difficult issues to be important and beneficial.Social scientists should not avoid discussing suicide with research participants because of discomfort with the topic.These findings have important implications for future research on suicide prevention programs in rural Alaska.