Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Advocating for Yourself in College When Living with Disease and Disability

Whether just diagnosed with RA or having lived with the disease for years, it is during the college years that you will learn to become your own advocate.  Previously parents may have fulfilled this role (one which never really ends), but it is ultimately your responsibility to know where and how to request the services you need.  And if you are a parent reading this, it is good to know what your current or future college student’s options are.

Disabilities Services Office on Campus
Every college or university has a disabilities services office which is your starting point.  If you have already been living with disability when you are admitted to college, register with the disability services office prior to the beginning of the first academic semester (only if you need to request accommodations).  For first-year students, registering during the school’s orientation program helps to ensure that accommodations will be in place on the first day of the semester.  Keep in mind, however, that you still must be able to meet a program's admission, academic, and technical standards (i.e., all essential nonacademic admissions criteria) either with or without accommodation.

Read this post in its entirety:

RA and College: Academic Accommodations on Campus

A similar post geared at college students living with MS will be published tomorrow.

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