<p>One more thought. Given your son's obvious brilliance combined with his low gpa, they will want to understand the discrepancy. Their fear will be that he will have the same problem in college. </p>
<p>To address this, your son could make sure he explains in his essay what he wants to learn in college, how he will accomplish it, and what is his ultimate goal (e.g., what kind of life, career). He can talk about exceptions to the pattern of lower gpa, like certain assignemnts or subjects that he really excelled at.</p>
<p>I would suggest he apply to wide selection of colleges, including some very competitive and fitting his "ideal" match. With an unusual background, it is very hard to predict what the adcoms will do even at very similar colleges.</p>
<p>The notion of helicopter parents has been discussed elsewhere in CC but I may have a different twist on it that I'd like some assistance with. I am preparing a short article about helicopter parents and realize that for young people with disabilties, helicopter parenting has been/can be a good and/or bad thing in that in many instances the parents really have had to fight for the things their child needs/neeeded in high school. With the ADA, the child is to be his/her own advocate.</p>
<p>If you're a parent, or a college advisor -- What has worked or not, in helping parents let go or alter their focus in being there for their child? What would you like the parent (or college staff) to know?</p>
<p>I am not quite sure that if it were my child I would advise disclosing a disability and the lack of adequate accomodations for it as the cause for a continuing 'gap' between academic performance and the child's potential. It would seem to me it would raise more concerns than it would alleviate among the top tier college adcoms at a time when they can afford to be extremely selective and risk averse. Whether or not he gets accepted to a top ten college by disclosing or not disclosing may not be as important as finding a school where he can receive the proper 'help' and accomodations so he can demonstrate his academic potential to others and to himself. When the 'gap' closes and the college is not challenging enough, there might be a chance to transfer in his sophomore or junior year. I know this because my child did.</p>
<p>i'm searching for a college or post-secondary learning experience for my 21 year old adhd son-he's so bright yet so disorganized and vulnerable -he's already spent 1 year at a major university but with little/no success - he says he's ready to go back to school now -yet i'm unsure-he's got to have a supportive environment -this is a young man who has trouble getting up on his own! he would do great if he had his own secretary!</p>
<p>I don't know a lot about it, but I understand that Landmark has a two year program specifically designed for LD students who learn the study and other skills they need, complete college courses successfully with the support they need, and then often transfer to a wide range of good colleges. Does anyone have experience with this?</p>
<p>PieceofCake, in terms of disclosure, I don't know the answer, but another poster on this board who is now a student at UC Berkeley, but whose numbers were not competitive for Berkeley, indicated that UCB has a special admissions process that takes LD's into account if the student discloses. (Check out how this works before applying, obviously.)</p>
<p>I have two highly intelligent, creative ADD sons who attend/ed a very good public high school. I got a 504 for the first and had meetings with all of his teachers to explain his disability and resulting anxiety regarding homework, etc. Here's what I found: teachers have a hard time believing a socially well adjusted, compliant, smart kid has ADD. As a matter of fact, my experience has been that most teachers don't believe in ADD (as opposed to ADHD) at all. No one helped or accpeted the accomodations. Some teachers didn't even want to write a recommendation letter because they felt if he just tried harder his homework would get done and his grades would be mostly A's. (They should have seen him when the anxiety kicked in each evening) In one of my letters, I compared this line of thinking to a teacher telling a kid in a wheelchair to get out and run the track; as if overcoming a disability was simply a matter of will. My son eventually got into a top university due to his athletic ability. (Teachers also think anyone with athletic ability is trading on that to get out of doing their work) Although my son got in for sports, the competitive top 25 school is a great fit for him and he is thriving. He won't be a valedictorian but two profesors talked to him about graduate school during his first semester there becasue of his contributions to class discussions. This is the same kid I suffered many sessions of great heaving sobs about wondering if he could ever survive high school. </p>
<p>My other son is still in high school and hates it. He also was diagnosed with ADD at the end of his sophomore year when it became clear his grades did not match up with his potential (SAT in the 96-98%). This time I didn't even bother to get a 504 because I knew that the biggest problem his disability is causing is a lack of enough A's to get him into a "smart" college. And that's the Catch 22, isn't it? The very schools that would be likely to engage them the most and keep them intensely focused are the ones that won't take them because of a GPA that makes them look lazy, which is, in fact, the opposite of what they are. I hope my younger son does disclose his ADD in one of his essays. The fact that he took a rigorous schedule when it takes him twice as long to do the work shows perserverance and dedication and a dedication to figuring out time management. One thing my younger son discovered was that when he took college courses (two, so far) that he tended to do better in that format than in high school where the busywork and enormous amount of class hours drain him and make focusing next to impossible. I think he will take a chance and apply to his dream colleges and let them know about the ADD. I know for sure they won't let him in with his GPA unless there is a good reason for it so he has nothing to lose. My friend got her son into U of Arizona. Their SALT program is great and the admissions process is personal and takes the individual into account. Good luck with your son. Try to get him in somewhere as an athlete, if you think he can handle a busy schedule at college. My son is Division One, but I think D-3 would be the best solution for most ADD kids because they get more free time at that level. The support most schools have for their athletes is incredible. The kids definitely have to do the work, but they have study hall and tutors and someone is always checking on them to make sure they stay academicallly eligible to participate on the team. My older one is living proof that some ADD kids do a lot better in college than they do in high school. Just get him in somewhere he loves.</p>
<p>Silvergoblin asked about disclosing her disability on the application for grad school and the answer would be determined by what there is to explain about discrepancies in grades and/or test scores that were impacted by the challenge. I would suggest an attached personal statement that clearly describes the before and what Silvergoblin did to be so successful in the second degree.</p>
<p>I have found that the answer depends on what questions you ask the college/Disability service provider. There are many colleges that do not necessarily have a fee for service/structured program, but definitely have excellent support services that go above and beyond federally mandated services. First identify what services are needed to help you be successful and then talk to the college to determine if these accommodations/services are available with the appropriate documentation.</p>
<p>A few thought about above posts.......It is extremely
important to get help, especially through tutors and mentors for these students. Even having a buddy to double check that alarm clock is not "turned off." (Need to avoid co-dependency however.) Completing and handing in homework should be managed in elementary school, but it's never too late to figure out ways to compensate.</p>