Hi everyone! I am a high schooler with an accommodation plan in high school. This means I get testing accommodations and breaks when I need them. I was wondering how this would transfer to college. I’m applying for a lot of competitive schools and a lot of bigger schools too, so I would appreciate any perspective. No disrespectful comments please.
It should not be an issue. Whoever works with you at the HS level should be able to help you with this transition. It is important that your testing is up to date.
In general this is how it works…Every college has an office of disability services. You will have to give that office your paperwork and they will review it to decide if you are eligible for accommodations (such as extra time, breaks etc.) at the college. If you qualify for accommodations, then you go to the office at the start of every semester with your schedule and the office of disability services will prepare a letter for you to give each of your professors. This is where it is different from HS. You have to give the letter to your professor and talk to him/her about your situation. You need to arrange with your professor how you will handle each exam. For example my S got extra time on exams – some professors had him start the exam in class and finish it in their office, others sent the entire exam to the office of disability services and he took it there, and many other combinations. The long and short of it is that you will need to be proactive to get the accommodations. My S found that professors were generally accommodating and non-judgmental.
I would also suggest that if you visit a final few college choices after acceptances come out that you make an appointment to meet with someone in the school’s office of disability services when you are on campus to get a sense of what paperwork/testing they will require, how they work things etc.
Each college will have a disability office which will review your documentation and say what accommodations are available. You may not get exactly what you do at present. You don’t have to mention it when you apply, but make sure you get everything approved before starting your studies, as accommodations are not usually retrospective.
Have a look on the websites of the colleges you’re considering.
FWIW, I know someone whose son has accommodations and is at Dartmouth. Getting what he needs has been very easy.