With college application season in full swing, high school students with disability accommodations may be wondering how they can set themselves up for success in college. Firstly, it is important to know that students with IEP or 504 Plan accommodations can apply to college without disclosing their status, as colleges are prohibited from asking about disabilities during their application processes. But once a student achieves admission into their college of choice, what should they do next? The IEP process ends after high school and so do special education programs, so colleges do not provide IEP’s. However, if a student had an IEP in high school, they could provide that IEP to their college and use it as a starting point to work out appropriate accommodations in college. The Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act do continue to protect the rights of college students with disabilities and do not end with high school. A student who had a 504 Plan in high school can similarly use that plan as a starting point for potential college accommodations. There are several other steps that, if taken early on, can make all the difference for a student’s success.
Perhaps the most important thing for college-bound students with disabilities to know is that there is no Child Find requirement in college. In K-12 education, the responsibility to assess the needs of children with disabilities and provide appropriate accommodations falls on the school. In college, the student carries the responsibility of self-disclosure and must formally request accommodations in order to receive any. In order to receive disability accommodations in college, students must first meet with the Disability Services Coordinator at their college.
Disability Services will conduct an individual evaluation of each student that seeks accommodations. No two students’ accommodations are required to be the same. For this reason, it is important for students to be prepared and to engage in self-advocacy when dealing with Disability Services. The sooner a student meets with Disability Services for their college, the better. We recommend setting up a meeting as soon as a student commits to their college to ensure that they have time to gather and provide any paperwork or records Disability Services may need in order to determine accommodations.
A student’s relationship with Disability Services can influence their college experience and determine which accommodations are appropriate for the student. It is critical that students meeting with Disability Services advocate for themselves, understand what is being discussed, and feel empowered to ask questions and make requests during the process. At these meetings, students can expect to discuss their disabilities and how they impacts them, including how they impacts their experience in the classroom; accommodations they have had in the past and if they did or did not work for them; and any medical documentation of their disabilities including prior evaluations or assessments.
The more prepared a student is to request specific accommodations, the more likely it is that they will receive the accommodations they want. We recommend making a list of desired accommodations prior to meeting with Disability Services in order to ensure that Disability Services is aware of what accommodations a student feels they need. Below are three brief examples of common college-level accommodations:
1) Additional Time on Assessments
2) Quiet Testing / Separate Testing Area
3) Preferential Seating
Once a student is given accommodations through Disability Services, the responsibilities of the student do not end there. Students must continue to engage in self-advocacy and communicate with their professors in order to ensure their academic success. If an accommodation is not working, needs to be implemented differently or changed altogether, students should feel empowered to communicate that to their professors and Disability Services. Remember – self-advocacy is key, and engaging in these steps early on can set students up for success in their college careers!
Written by attorney Megan Mitchell at Abdnour Weiker, LLP