<p>Can anyone point me to any info on top schools that are accepting and supportive of adhd students?</p>
<p>What schoools should one look at if scores were say 700-750 reading/writing, 550 math but could really use support for organization?</p>
<p>thanks!</p>
<p>The state universities have very good resources for students with disabilities of any kind. The link below has a list of ALL colleges in your state. (I'm assuming you want her close to home?)</p>
<p>U.S</a>. Universities, by State</p>
<p>Private universites are great choices too. They are smaller, so they can be more flexible. They are a lot more expensive to attend though. It might help if you ask your local disability services what their opinion is.</p>
<p>I wish you and your child the best of luck.</p>
<p>My advice would be to come up with a list of schools that you like -- academic safeties, matches, and reaches -- and where you think you'd be happy. Then, start researching the services those colleges offer LD students. You can look up many colleges' LD service offices on line, and when you look at their staff lists and their programs, you will get a pretty good "first impression" sense of whether those particular colleges could work for you. You can follow up by visiting the LD offices when you make college visits, and you can also make phone calls if you can't visit but you have specific questions, as in, I need to to use assistive technologies (not necessarily applicable for ADD, but you get the idea) can you facilitate that? Do you have counselors or coaches I can meet with regularly for organizational help? Do you generally provide accommodations consistent with a student's 504 plan, or do you re-evaluate and come up with your own plan? If I send documentation, or have my evaluating psychologist call you, after I'm accepted, can I get a ballpark sense of whether I'm the kind of student who'd be likely to receive accommodations and support before I send in my deposit? (We neglected to ask this last question, and although things worked out very well eventually, there were a few tense moments.)</p>
<p>My point is that it's probably easier to go from a list of colleges you like for reasons unrelated to LD-friendliness and then to determine if they can meet your needs. This will take a lot of research, but in the end it will be absolutely worth it. And you might be amazed to discover that colleges you never thought might be LD friendly will offer tremendous support. </p>
<p>Another avenue to use if you're having trouble getting a sense of the quality of the LD support at a particular school might be to go onto that college's CC site and ask.</p>
<p>I also want to make sure you know that you do not have to identify yourself as having an LD or needing LD services in the admissions process. You will still be able to avail yourself of services after you are accepted whether or not you told the college about the LD up front.</p>
<p>So many schools offer help and support that you should really look at the overall fit of the school FIRST and then see if their disability support services are a good fit for you. Sort of how you would like them to see you as a whole person who is a good fit for their school and then take into account your particular LD. Most schools with a decent sized disability office offer organizational seminars for their LD kids as well as support groups where people share their tools for success (and frustrations with failure). Look for location, academic fit, size, and social atmosphere and then narrow down based on availability of disability services. Do not hesitate to call the disabled student's office and ask to talk to a counselor there about their services. My son did that with one school; they were more than helpful and it was very informative for him. If you visit any schools, stop by their LD office and take a look at the flyers on the bulletin board- that is a good way to gauge what they offer in real life, as opposed to brochure descriptions. Good luck.</p>
<p>I didnt realize there was that much support out there for LD students attending college, let alone LD offices.</p>
<p>I really thought our list would need to be shaped around what schools were even open to LD issues. As of yesterday, she moved Princeton onto her list and I was starting to get concerned.</p>
<p>Thanks for the pointers!</p>
<p>I would love to hear more from any parents or students with expierence.</p>
<p>I don't know about Princeton vis a vis LD support, but I do know the parent of a Yale student who is receiving excellent accommodation. Stanford also has an excellent support office and some flexible policies in the face of physical challenges, and UC Berkeley is outstanding and has traditionally had a variety of programs in keeping with the city of Berkeley's senstivity to the rights and needs of people with disabilities. </p>
<p>That said, take a cautionary note from musicmom, whose kid was accommodated throughout hs and on her SAT's, but whose college decided she wasn't eligible for accommodation. (Not sure which college.) We came close to having a problem of this kind as well, but fortunately the LD office was very open to reviewing the file and the problem was quickly resolved. Knowing all this, I would try to find a way to determine if the particular school's LD office thought that your D's test results were within the parameters of eligibility for LD services at their school before signing on the dotted line. (Don't know if this is possible, but it's a thought.)</p>
<p>In terms of Princeton being on the list, though, I am wondering if the 550 on the math SAT would be a problem.</p>
<p>Noticed you're in New York. Have heard a bunch of anecdotal stuff about Columbia, all good, but from some years ago. Also check out Barnard -- not sure if the LD services are combined for both schools or separate.</p>
<p>Berkeley is indeed known for having a good Disabled Student's Program, but just like everything else at Cal, no one will hold your hand. (They have an optional separate application process that gets triggered when an applicant discloses a disability on the general application which allows the student to send in first semester senior grades and proof of their disability, along with a letter of recommendation.) Students at Berkeley MUST take the initiative. Help will be given when asked for, but if the student is not proactive on her own behalf, the DSP will not be much help. For example, if the student needs a note taker, they must recruit one from their classes and then bring the appropriate paperwork to the DSP. (Note takers get paid at semester end by the DSP) A shy student might have a problem approaching fellow students the first day of class and asking for note takers. Then they have to arrange to get the notes after each class, etc. On top of that, most college professors, while wishing to be compliant with state laws, don't really care about your child's LD. The student usually has to set up testing, etc. with the professor in advance and generally manage all of their accommodations. The DSP advises them and offers counsel, but the students need to help themselves. Many top schools accept and support ADD and other LD students. Going to an "easier" school where the competition is less intense might actually be better for some LD kids. It is really all about the fit of the school and how much support your child needs. If you have a child who may need a lot of support, I highly suggest having them limit their applications to schools within driving distance of home (or a very short flight). The college lifestyle can torpedo even the most serious student's best intentions to get their school work done and LD kids are at higher risk than those who do not have LD's. Although smaller schools are often recommended, for some kids that would be a bad fit socially so each family needs to be brutally honest about what trade-offs they will make in order to find the best academic situation for their child. The higher ranked school is not always the best fit so try to keep the rankings in perspective as you make your list. Stopping by the DSP offices on various campuses will tell you a lot, as will talking to students at the schools. You can always try to get info on particular schools by posting questions in the school's individual CC forums.</p>