<p>I am a Junior in high school and I am a student with a documented math learning disability and have questions about college admissions. Here is a quick summary of my situation: I have top level SAT scores in critical reading and Writing, but my math score is average at best. I attend a competitive private high school and I have taken some honors and AP's in the humanities, but not in Math or Math-related science courses, due to the fact that my disability makes it impossible to get good grades on that side of the academic spectrum. Overall, I have a pretty good weighted GPA even though my math/science doesn't help it much. When I apply to colleges, my guidance counselor will explain my disability in his recommendation. And lastly, I am applying for a non math or science major. My question is: will college admissions offices take my disability into consideration when looking at my math SAT score and math/math related science grades?</p>
<p>If you don’t get the answers you are seeking here, Matt… maybe try the LD/Challenges forum?</p>
<p>[Learning</a> Differences and Challenges - LD, ADHD - College Confidential](<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/learning-differences-challenges-ld-adhd/]Learning”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/learning-differences-challenges-ld-adhd/)</p>
<p>“My question is: will college admissions offices take my disability into consideration when looking at my math SAT score and math/math related science grades?”</p>
<p>Yes - - but the real question is HOW will the disability and those grades be considered. You can’t really expect competitive schools to overlook a deficiency. (My D did not disclose LD on her applications. She did not want any of the schools to signal that her grades/scores might be the result of extra time or other accommodations.)</p>
<p>Also, remember, college is not hs and you are not entitled to the same types of accommodations. Specifically, colleges are not required to modify their course/grad/distrib requirements for LD students. So even if you were elig for certain math, sci or foreign lang exemptins in hs, you may have to satisfy college distrib reqs in those areas (so I would advise that in making your list, you review the college catalogue carefully to see what math/sci courses you will have to take in order to graduate). You should also check to see what type of documentation is required for accommodation. </p>
<p>We found the most difficult aspect of the process being the fact that the overwhelming maf of schools will not evaluate a student for accommodations until after s/he ENROLLED. As a result, D limited her list to schools with open curric (or minimal distrib/gened reqs) and the handful of schools where the disability office agreed to do an assessments if D was ADMITTED (so we would know, before she enrolled, what accommodatins would be granted)</p>
<p>If you have a documented disability and have been receiving accommodations from your school for it, you may be able to get accommodations on the SAT (and ACT) if you have not already done so. Typically what they do is give you extra time on the test. That would not help with your classroom grades, but can at least bring the SAT score a little higher.</p>
<p>Whether to have your counselor describe the disability or not might depend on just how low your math/science grades are.</p>
<p>We have found the book, “K & W Guide to Colleges for Students with Learning Disabilities or ADHD” to be a very helpful book. Published by Princeton Review. </p>
<p>From our personal experiences, we found UCONN to be a very supportive environment for students with LD’s.</p>
<p>It would be helpful to attend a college that understands your LD and is willing to accomodate. Being upfront about the LD helps you choose a college that is a good fit.</p>
<p>^^ Very true - - depending on how low your grades/scores are, the nature of the disability and the quality/quantity of accommodtaions you will need to graduate. But while revealing the disability may assist in identifying a school that is a good fit, it may also adversely affect your prospects for admission. </p>
<p>D rec’d minimal accommodations in hs, scored very well on SAT - - but didn’t want to disclose that she rec’d extra time, and was applying to competitive LACs. She chose a school w/ no geneds/distrib reqs and needed minimal accommodations. Had her grades/scores put LACs w/ open curric (many of which are competitive) out of reach or if she had been interested in uni (which tend to have more reqs), she/we might have chosen a different strategy.</p>
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<p>Probably not. And even less so at schools with highly competitive admissions. They will use the transcripts, SATs, and GPAs provided and compare them to everyone else, IMO. They will not add a letter grade to your math transcripts, or anything like that, IMO. Unless you have an admissions counselor at a specific school tell you differently, this is what you should assume. Look at the naviance data (if available); this will accurately guide you to safety schools and match schools.</p>
<p>There is a growing list of schools which do not require SAT scores anymore, some of them are highly regarded, quality schools. If the math score is really low, consider applying to SAT optional schools.</p>
<p>MagicMatt</p>
<p>I most sincerely do believe that Dyscalculia as well as Non Verbal L.D. are just downright not as common as Dyslexia and the like. Therefore, I think it very good of your guidance counselor to explain your situation and all of that. </p>
<p>Please keep in mind some things about University and Community College with regards to living with a learning disability. The accommodations you have received at High School will be a trifle bit different than those you will receive at University and to learn more of that you will need to read up on things at the web site(s) for all of the Universities on your list. It would also be a very good idea to learn more over on the area of this web site which deals with learning disabilities. </p>
<p>And, as near as I can gather, it is a rather good idea to maybe at least think of getting re-evaluated for your learning disability prior to starting up at University. There are different schools of thought on that subject, but a fair amount of Universities as well as Community Colleges seem to have almost like an expiration date for your formal write up and that time-frame could very well differ from school to school but I do not know that for sure.</p>
<p>Need help. My son was diagnosed with Non-Verbal learning disability 9 years ago. He has always had resource classes. He is now a junior with the hopes of going to college. He holds a 3.7 GPA. Unfortunately on his final WAIS or Weschler he scored below average. He has so much determination and wants to succeed. I have inquired at several LD Colleges and you have to be above average, very confusing. Is there a college for him or should I now turn the direction on him…ultimately telling him he can’t go to college. We live in St. Louis area if that helps but are willing to go outside to make this happen. Point being we have a child who wants to be all he can be and because of a test saying his IQ is below. We know college will be a struggle but we are eager to attempt it. Please help with any information good or bad.</p>
<p>Flight4Hunter, the combined IQ is a bad descriptor of people with NVLD, because NVLD people have such disparate subscores. </p>
<p>Your son is probably bad at math-- that’s practically diagnostic for NVLD-- but does he have strengths? Is he capable of doing college level work in other areas? Is he a good writer? How did he do on his SATs? Colleges, some more some less, want to help students who can succeed with help, but ultimately, to get a college degree the student has to be able to do the work. If your son can do college level work and you can afford to send him, then there will be a college for him.</p>
<p><strong>“Your son is probably bad at math-- that’s practically diagnostic for NVLD”</strong></p>
<p>NO, NO, NO!!! So not true!!! Please don’t spread mis-information! Higher level math <em>can</em> be an issue – it doesn’t <em>have</em> to be. Esp. if the child has a way above average IQ</p>
<p>My S was diagnosed w/NVLD at 9 and we’ve been dealing with it and math has never been a problem (He’s in honors calculus and getting an A+)</p>
<p>one of the indicators of NVLD is a large split (more than 2 standard deviations) between Verbal and Performance scores on the WISC tests–with verbal being higher</p>
<p>Agree, my D16 has an NVLD. She is very good at some kinds of math (especially the higher levels), although gets extra time on tests due to slow processing speed. </p>
<p>Regarding the colleges, your son’s IQ score should have nothing to do with his admission to college, even one that offers learning disability services for students. Here is a thread about colleges with good support for learning disabilities in general.</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/learning-differences-challenges-ld-adhd/292994-colleges-strong-ld-support.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/learning-differences-challenges-ld-adhd/292994-colleges-strong-ld-support.html</a></p>
<p>One thing we have been considering for my D is a college on a trimester system (or even a college that only does one course at a time, like Colorado College) so she does not have to cope with as many different classes at one time. She has a lot of executive functioning issues, so that is appealing. Right now she goes to a high school with block schedule, and only has 3 academic subjects in a given quarter (but very intense focus on those). It is a good fit for her, so we are considering colleges with that in mind as well.</p>