<p>Close friends confided that they're worried that their DS w/LDs "overreached", and that his 1st choice LAC "CTCL" school, where he's EA accepted, may prove to be a significant academic challenge for him. They think he'll fit into the likely "30th percentile range" of class for the published school stats (though probably closer to 50% percentile for male students, I suspect). Their son intends to apply for "extended time for exams" as an academic accommodation, and has necessary eval paperwork. He's a solid B+ student at a rigorous private college prep, didn't study for SAT/ACT, so his scores don't reflect "cramming". He's a motivated student, but has his challenges. Anyone had similar post-acceptance reservations? I'd like to share advice.</p>
<p>If he is a motivated student and uses the resources on campus, peer tutoring, the disability office, etc., I don’t know that it wouldn’t be possible to maintain a B average there. Obviously not knowing the kid or the school or the major it’s hard to answer. I think everyone has some reservations about their chosen school for one reason or another.</p>
<p>If he has a disability, there is nothing wrong with going to a school where he can succeed when he has the accomodations. No one would ever say " I don’t think they should go to this college because they are in a wheelchair, and if they did not have that wheelchair and they have to request special seating each time." Same thing. Just because you cannot see the disability does not mean it is not there.</p>
<p>Yes, it is a valid issue. Even kids without any issues often have problems when they go away to school. They may find themselves having difficulties dealing with the social, emotional issues and the changes in the way teaching/grades/assignments work at college. This is always an issue that worries parents. When the school is a bit of reach, there is that issue too, especially if the student is coming from a school that does not tend to sent kids to schools like that. A friend of mine was devastated when her DD bombed first term (and ended up losing her merit money). She was salutatorian and took the most advanced courses at the public high school, and did well on the tests. When she went to Case, she was blown away. Utterly and completely so. But she did ralley, and graduate. Some are not so resilient or fortunate. It happens all of the time . (so often at Case that they have since changed reqs to keep merit money).</p>
<p>The thing is, colleges are not going to be on top of the kids. The profs and TAs teach the class and that is it, especially for the intro courses. A student can get help but has to be pro active. A kid who was doing well because of parental involvement and school staff on board to help him with his week points is going to have to do without those aides, and have to deal with the personal crap as well, which may be the crowing blow if that is a disability that he has.</p>
<p>Our Missypie, a long time poster, has experience, discussions and advice for those whose kids have extra issues, and wonder how colleges deal with such kids. Usually, they don’t. They are treated just like anyone else.</p>
<p>A lot depends on what he plans to study and what he sees himself doing after college. If a student wants to be a pre-med or compete for certain internships, for example, GPA will be very important, and if a student is going to bump along in the bottom half of the class at the chosen school, certain highly GPA-dependent paths are not going to be realistic ambitions.</p>
<p>However, LD students with accommodations are not necessarily poor performers, either. A student with appropriate accommodations can compete quite successfully with peers. Organizational issues and motivation, though, can be problems. When the student is described as having “challenges” but is otherwise organized and motivated, he might be perfectly fine.</p>
<p>He might have to work harder than he ever has in his whole academic life but he is probably entirely capable of being successful. Kid’s fumble for lots of reasons, but generally colleges accept kids they know have the potential to be successful. I ditto everything cpt said.</p>
<p>D was a very strong student in high school, scored a 2300 SAT, and in taking algebra and geometry in middle school she had entered high school 2 years ahead of the normal track. But her high school math dept. seemed weak to me, and I suspected it was particularly weak when compared with the strong prep schools I knew her college peers would hail from. So although her performance was fine (A’s), I was not convinced she was well-prepared for college math. Her brother, who had been a stronger math student, nevertheless struggled a bit too at an Ivy. Friends told me I was nuts for worrying, that she’d be fine because she’s smart, etc.</p>
<p>Well, after midterms in her first math class freshman year, the department dropped her, and half the class who had also done poorly, down to a lower level. So while this was not ideal, the school was obviously used to the problem and so essentially provide a quasi-remedial level. Math has continued to plague her greatly, however.</p>
<p>I know her case is different from what you’re asking, because there’s no documented disability. However she did have a weakness. The good news is that colleges do have provisions in place for handling academic problems. This family should assemble information in advance about what services are available. I was the lone, allegedly nutty, voice warning D she might have trouble and telling her she’d need to invest a whole lot of time in math. But I think that helped shield her from some of the shock of not doing well at first. This boy may need to have you or a successful college student warn him in advance about the difference in intensity and difficulty from high school. Also, someone who knows his academic issues can perhaps help him plan a strategy for if he fails an exam, etc. If he is armed in advance with tools and information, he will be less likely to simply shut down and panic like a lot of kids do.</p>
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<p>I think this is often the biggest challenge for students who had generous accommodations in high school. They go from having their needs accommodated automatically to having to seek their accommodations. Some colleges are much more committed to serving students who need accommodations than others. If your child needs special treatment in college it is better to seek a school that will be willing to accommodate your child’s needs rather than seek the school with the highest USNWR ranking for your child. </p>
<p>You need to be honest with yourself and understand that a child who receives an A in a class while being accommodated with more time for tests, or other assistance may not be able to perform on the same level if they do not receive those same accommodations. </p>
<p>I think it is more important for the OP’s friend to find out whether the student will be able to receive the same sort of accommodations at different colleges as he had in high school. He needs to compare how each school will support his needs and make his decision based on that support.</p>
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<p>Two years ahead in math would mean that she had taken all of the lower division math courses before entering college, right? In that case, jumping right into proof-heavy upper division math like real analysis might be a pretty big transition, even for students who are very good at math. Especially if she took an honors course.</p>
<p>College math is a whole other thing than high school, especially post calculus. As a math major, i can tell you this. Engineering, Math sciences, Mathematics, the sciences as they start using more math than reading skills, computer sciences, lose so many kids from those disciplines in college. </p>
<p>From what I have seen, however, it’s the social and everyday living part that often rattles kids who have issues in that areas. Dealing with that AND the academics are just too much. We have a cousin who was quite brilliant during high school who flunked out of college first term. These days, he would probably be diagnosed as being on the autiism spectrum or with Aspbergers. He would believe what other kids told him. If they said “no one studies” or to “blow off” a course, he did. At home, his siblings, close friends, teachers, family would keep him on the right track and filter any comments or beliefs he started to have. No such protection in college. He was home after the first term. He successfully got his degree commuting–took him 7 years, but he has a good job, and has been self sufficient for years. But the hardest thing for him was dealing with folks on a casual, hanging out basis, and he still needs someone to help him filter because even in his fifties, he cannot discern character. In a closed setting with rules, he’s fine. In his case,going away to college was a big mistake, but you know, doing it really showed where the porblems were with him. Sometimes you gotta try it to see if will fly or not. And sometimes it does.</p>
<p>Jumping into this thread as a newbie to CC. I agree with what ProudParent said about, “If your child needs special treatment in college it is better to seek a school that will be willing to accommodate your child’s needs rather than seek the school with the highest USNWR ranking for your child.” I was a kid with a disability who hadn’t received or needed accommodations on the HS level but started floundering in college. I went to the best school I applied to because it appealed to me on many levels and also for its prestige. Fast forward 30 years later and I have a DD with the same disability and I am looking at colleges a lot differently. I have already told her, “We are not looking at the best school you can get in to, we are looking for the best school for you.” I’m trying to set her up for success and to be able to get the entire college experience - personal growth and development as well as good academics and career foundation.</p>