Difficulties with Parents/College

<p>I apologize as this is quite a long story. Essentially, my overarching question is is it worth for me to apply to colleges, and what should I do to handle my current situation?</p>

<p>Some background information: From the beginning it was clear that I had some form of learning problems, but until around 9th grade I coasted easily, skipping two grades and essentially never doing homework at home. In ninth grade though, I found myself completely unable to keep up with the slough of required work and fell behind considerably. This trend continued until my senior year, where I managed to bring my grades up considerably (upward trend).
My parents essentially set up a meeting with an educational specialist who did not follow through with a detailed report, and instead just sent a letter to my school which got me accommodations. My parents refused to follow up about getting an actual report, and the general consensus seemed to be that I have various learning disabilities although it is not perfectly clear which ones and to what degree, although officially for school purposes I am labeled as having ADD and Dysgraphia. This experience really made me bitter towards educational specialists but the situation worsened. I met with a psychiatrist who started me on various medications which did not seem to work but we were getting closer to finding one that does. Eventually a medication came up which seemed to fit my needs and my parents agreed for me to take it. My mother though, consistently lied to me about the fact that my prescription was indeed available, and then refused to allow me to try it, and from then on has refused to let me try to find a medication that suits me, even though it was her suggestion in the first place. Because I am under 18, legally my options are limited. A year after this occurred my parents forced me to meet another educational specialist, threatening to not allow me to partake in certain activities if I did not. Skeptical from the previous session, I preferred to do it on an hourly basis as opposed to paying all at once, which my parents promised would occur, and the specialist agreed was possible. The meeting went very poorly, the specialist was incredibly ill informed and based everything she said off of generalizations and incorrect information, therefore I decided not to meet again. Turns out though, my parents lied to me and paid her up front 800 dollars for services that were never rendered. Beyond lying to me they refuse to do anything, and we are left 1600 dollars shorter from two meetings with educational specialists who did nothing. My parents take the attitude that 800 dollars is nothing, which really upsets me. Now I feel not only betrayed but completely disillusioned with the system and want nothing to do with my parents as I don't feel I can trust them anymore. In addition, I am living in a completely new city and have no support system available.
In general I struggle to know what to do. My GPA is a 3.24 which is quite low and my SATs were 2030 which is also low. My problem with the SAT is that I took them after not being in school for half a year (gap year) and struggled to get back into an academic mode. Therefore I am really not sure what to do in regards to college. I feel it could be a good opportunity, but I don't want to go if I won't be able to really utilize the opportunities, and seeing as how my learning difficulties have not been addressed i am not sure I will be able to do that. Assuming I have any chance at getting in, I can receive free tuition at a top 25 school, but my dad who works there refuses to ask some important and relevant questions that I have and the school takes over a week to respond to inquiries. In general my parents have done nothing to help with the task of choosing/ applying to colleges, and with my current difficulties with concentration/organization/ time management I am not sure I will even manage to complete applications.
I apologize for the completely unorganized rant, but it would be greatly appreciated if anyone has advice regarding how to manage the complete betrayal/ lack of support I feel from the situation with my parents, or advice for if college is even a viable/ good choice.</p>

<p>Dude, you need to get that report from the testing. You will need it at college. Dysgraphia generally allows time and a half or double time for testing, use of computers for tests and exams, relief from fill-in-the-bubble tests and extra paper. If you’re into math, it’s more complicated because you can’t easily type formulae or calculations – the extra time is really important here. Also, do you have problems recalling formulas or theorems for math? That’s not atypical for dysgraphia. It’s called “orthographic coding” issues. It may entitle you to use of a formula sheet – which is usually a formidable battle at most schools.</p>

<p>With these disabilities, you need to check out the schools very carefully, especially after acceptance. Start with the Claremont schools (Pomona, Claremont-McKenna, Scripts, Harvey Mudd and I can’t think of the fifth). Very good with these disabilities.</p>

<p>Get used to doing all this by yourself and for yourself. When you turn 18, you are the only one a school will deal with. </p>

<p>Lastly, cut your parents some slack. They do their best. Soon enough, all of this will be totally your responsibility. Go get your full report and tell them what accommodations you need. High school accommodation do not automatically transfer to college. You need to reestablish.</p>

<p>It seems like you have not been quite as cooperative as you think you have been in the process of learning about your diagnosis. One suggestion- swallow your pride and ask to have a meeting with the original educational specialist who tested you. Discuss the results and get them plus recommendations in writing (even if you do not agree with them.) That will be a starting point.</p>