Does anyone have any experience with this? Please PM me if you do.
Yes, there are accommodations for students in graduate school who, like in college admissions, must meet all requirements for the graduate program. There are fewer students with and without disabilities attending grad school! than college. Students with disabilities probably register for the same office.
As students with disabilities go through college, they often cease using many accommodations. Many choose majors and related careers that are less challenging to functional limitations or master skills that compensate for their disabilities. Graduate applicants with disabilities must meet the same academic and technical aspects of a graduate program. As applicants without disabilities and must progressively meet all program requirements.
It seems that functional limitations due to disabilities must be carefully reconsidered. Some limitations are not amenable to accommodations and substituting classes or depending on another person to take over completing requirements of the program and later professional obligations are not allowed. Assistive technology has enabled many persons with disabilities perform formerly undoable tasks. Hurray for research that e,lands our horizons!
The above post is excellent! If you take an admissions exam, be sure to request accommodations and have some sort of documentation to submit. By the time students with disabilities reach junior year, they have satisfied requirements that are more often accommodated. Most major in areas that both satisfy personal interests and don’t challenge functional limitations. Now, some students register for classes that don’t meet personal goals and are near impossible because of functional limitations.
For example, a student with cerebral palsy and required a large chair wanted to learn how to design, copy, reproduce, print posters and cards. The catalog description said learn how to make copies using equipment. He found the class met in a small room crammed with antiques such as the area, on a wooden platform no less, that required hand coloring and then rolling a heavy cylinder by hand to make a copy. It was pretty cool to see the machinery get inked and print and the student and I were impressed. We went back to the office and placed a call asking department faculty what class accomplished the student’s goals. He transferred into the correct class immediately and, of course, did very well. So, if a class isn’t what is wanted, get out right away and ask what would work. It surprises me how many kids stay in the wrong class at the expense of tuition. I am a believer that the appropriation class, training, internship can be found unless it is truly esoteric.
Pay attention to course requirements in graduate programs. Some thing such as cognitive assessment, for example, require clearly articulated directions that must be clear and said within time limits or other actions that require rolling blocks across a table or demonstrating how to assemble a puzzle. These things are standardized so may not be altered or said or done by someone other than the examiner. I have had students request substitution of classes that are required by the program, profession or credentialing agencies and promise they won’t seek a professional credential or seek a job there.
Instead, think about what attracts you to the program or profession. You may find that counseling or social work are good substitutes for school psychology. Now, think about whether the program doesn’t work because of fuctional limitations versus those who may say a student is unqualified because she compensates by doing something else. For example, a medical student who had difficulty feeling organs in the trunk thought about and implemented a technique that resulted in the information he needed. It is really important to differentiate professional requirements that legitimately can’t be met versus discrimination on the basis disability and respond appropriately.
After admission apply to the student professrional section of the appropriate organization and participate. Also you will probably read more than you ever anticipated. Get textbooks asap and start reading, If you are changing professions, look for changes in how material is organized and written. For example, even proficient readers may find legal texts and hornbooks are very intimidating. Also, find out the expectations and requirements for writing and use sticky notes with titles to separate specific requirements in the writing manual. An elderly person such as myself find information in the manual with sticky notes rather than looking online,
. Alteratively, choose a profession that uses the APA style manual.
I’m back. Graduate programs prepare students to be qualified applicants at the entry level for professions. Graduate school is often poshstudents last formal chance to try out accommodations that would be very helpful in relating functional limitations to job requirements. Beyond that, you may need somewhat different accommodations because of functional limitations in the environment and/or job requirements. That is useful for deciding on specific positions aka not in this lifetime.