Suicidal thoughts in college students is a universal public health agenda with complex psychosocial antecedents and protective variables. Emotional competence (EC), an ability to notice, analyze, and regulate emotions are linked to lower suicidal ideation, although the role of intellectual competence is debatable. This study investigates the relationships between suicidal ideation, emotional competence, and academic competence (AICS) in a college sample in Lucknow, India. 300 college students were included for this cross-sectional study with Standardized scales included the Suicidal Ideation Scale (SIS), an Emotional Competence Scale (EC), and the Academic Information Competence Scale (AICS) were used. Categorical associations were checked using chi square statistics with effect size estimates (phi), and independent samples t tests were planned under certain assumptions. The study found a significant correlation between SIS and EC categories (χ² = 150.792, p <.001, φ = 0.709), indicating that higher EC was linked to lower suicidal thoughts. There were no significant relationships between SIS and AICS (χ² = 8.87, p =.353) or EC and AICS (χ² = 5.903, p =.665). In this study, emotional competence appears to be a strong predictor of lower suicidal ideation, although intellectual competence does not show a meaningful link. The findings suggest the use of emotional skill training into campus mental health interventions.