————————————————————————

STUDENT COLLEGE RESOURCE

———————————————————————— GUIDE
Thinking about college can be Here’s what’s inside:
What I Wish I Knew ........................................................... 1
overwhelming. There are so many
College Readiness Assessment......................................... 14
decisions and so many options. It College Action Plan...........................................................17
can feel like the biggest decision of Questions to ask the Disability Services Office
During a College Visit........................................................21
your life. But it’s really just a lot of College Prep Checklist...................................................... 22
little choices. This student guide pulls Conversation Strategies for Students to Talk to
Parents about College.....................................................24
together some information that we National Organizations and Websites..............................25
hope will help. Remember, you have to Recommended Books .....................................................26
Disability Specific Resources for College Planning............. 27
do what’s right for you. Trust yourself!! Top Ten List for College Students by College Students .......28
This Student Resource Guide was developed to be used in conjunction with the book,
Navigating the Transition from High School to College for Students with Disabilities.
© Routledge, 2018

The content in this guide may be used for educational purposes without written
permission but with a citation to this source.

Grigal, M., Madaus, J., Dukes III, L., & Hart, D. (2018). Navigating the Transition from
High School to College for Students with Disabilities, Routledge: New York, NY.
Designed by David Temelini and Meg Grigal
WHAT I WISH I KNEW
There’s nothing quite like getting advice from someone who has been down
the same road and really “gets it.” Here is some advice for high school students
thinking about college from current or recent college students with disabilities.
Developed by Kim Elmore, Hetsie Veitch, & Wendy S. Harbour

CONTRIBUTIONS BY

NIGEL Abduh CRYSTAL Fike KINGS Floyd

JASON Harris ANN WAI-YEE Kwong TARA McFadden

KATE Pollack KATIE Roquemore K Wheeler

-1--1-
 STOP AND THINK ABOUT WHAT YOU ARE LOOKING
FOR IN A COLLEGE, AND THEN START LOOKING.
Jason explains: “Know what programs you might be
interested in but also know what kind of environment KNOW WHAT
would work for you. The college that I went to had a large PROGRAMS YOU MIGHT
number of commuting students, and there wasn’t a lot of BE INTERESTED IN BUT
people around over the weekends. I didn’t like that. You ALSO KNOW WHAT KIND OF
have to look at every aspect of your life when you look for a ENVIRONMENT WOULD
college. That is important.”
WORK FOR YOU.
Ann reminds students that they are the ones who have to
live with the choices they make: “At the end of the day, I
need to be happy with my choices that determine my life.”
And both Jason and Crystal suggests students remember
that not everyone wants to go to college for a four-year
degree, and other options for college exist. As Jason says,
“There are many options out there for different people.”
When choosing a college, think carefully about being the only one with your disability
on a campus. It’s easy to ask disability services offices if they have significant
experience with your type of disability and how many other students on campus have
similar disabilities. It’s your right to attend any campus, but it can be tougher if the
disability services office doesn’t have experience
with your disability, and Have you thought
there is no one to talk to about different
WHEN CHOOSING A COLLEGE, when problems arise. types of colleges?
THINK CAREFULLY ABOUT BEING Do you want to
Ann and her friend both
THE ONLY ONE WITH YOUR go full-time or
dealt with this: “I had
DISABILITY ON A CAMPUS. part time?
one friend in high school
who is blind. We both had Do you need
specific classes to
AP classes and the same get a job you want?
vocational rehabilitation
services. We were the
only blind students using Braille at [our respective] colleges, so ODS [Office of
Disability Services] would say, ‘No one else needs Braille,’ or ‘Nobody else is
complaining.’ We would like to have known this might happen when we were in high school.”
-2-
BE COMFORTABLE TALKING
ABOUT YOUR DISABILITY. YOU ARE YOUR STRONGEST
ADVOCATE IN COLLEGE. TELLING
Kate struggled with a disability resource office that had only one PEOPLE WHAT YOU NEED TO
counselor who worked with a handful of deaf and hard-of-hearing
SUCCEED PUTS YOU IN THE
undergraduates. She had to be very persistent and keep excellent
DRIVER’S SEAT.
records to support her self-advocacy efforts and eventually graduate
with high marks. “You are your strongest advocate in college. Telling
people what you need to succeed puts you in the driver’s seat.

getting information
for parents
Find information for your parents and families if they need it. Some parents or family
members are very nervous about college for students with disabilities. While high schools
are supposed to provide college information to students and their families,
this is not always the case.”
Ann tells us, “One of our friends was accepted by a [state university] but the What do your pare
nts think
about your college
parents said, ‘No, that’s too far, go to the local community college. We’re choices?
not comfortable with you going to a university far away because we still Are they supportiv
e?
have to cook for you.’” Ann suggests reaching out for the information and Do they have any co
ncerns?
forming connections: “Parents don’t get this information [about college] Is there a family fr
iend who
and there are resources out there for parents.” could talk to them?

learn from other families

K and her parents found resources when they “joined the International
Child Amputee Network (ICAN) for for families and people born without limbs or those who
become amputees as children, and it’s an international network, so they can ask questions
and connect to others.” K told us that “Shortly after I was born my
parents connected with [a young adult] in Maryland with almost
the exact same disability as me, and she ended up coming to Seattle
about three months after our first contact, and we were able to
meet.” K visits this friend every summer and she has influenced K’s
thinking about college and success. And now K has formed a similar
relationship with a younger person with the same disability.

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 ASK FOR WHAT YOU NEED AND USE THE
RESOURCES TO WHICH YOU ARE ENTITLED.
Kings explains, “asking for help is never a bad thing. I was afraid that if I reached out to
parents, my guidance counselor, or anyone about accommodations, that would be seen as
a sign of weakness or giving up. But the rewards for asking for help are almost immediate.
Overcoming pride and learning to ask for help is very valuable.”
Nigel adds “Come out of
your comfort zone. Don’t
THE REWARDS FOR ASKING FOR let anybody tell you that
HELP ARE ALMOST IMMEDIATE.
OVERCOMING PRIDE AND you can’t and don’t be
Do you know the
LEARNING TO ASK FOR HELP afraid to ask for help. accommodations you use
IS VERY VALUABLE. Find out who you are in school? If not--ask.
as a person. Don’t look Don’t forget to think
at your disability as a about accommodations
you’ll need outside of
bad thing. Don’t let class, like for getting
anybody keep you around campus, joining
clubs, or attending events.
from being yourself.”
And Tara reminds
us that real
friends will not
think differently about us because of an
accommodation: “Don’t be afraid to use IT DOESN’T BOTHER ME THAT I HAD
the resources that you are entitled to. I TO TAKE LONGER JUST BECAUSE MY
don’t mind that it took me longer to fully BRAIN WORKS DIFFERENTLY. FRIENDS
understand information. It doesn’t bother WHO DON’T GET ACCOMMODATIONS
DON’T CARE [THAT YOU HAVE]
me that I had to take longer just because my ANOTHER 30 MINUTES ON A TEST.
brain works differently. Friends who don’t get
accommodations don’t care [that you have]
another 30 minutes on a test.”

-4-
FIND FRIENDS, INCLUDING OTHER
STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES.
Ann explains how she “needed to step out of my
comfort zone to build a support network. I tried
I NEEDED TO STEP OUT OF MY
COMFORT ZONE TO BUILD A SUPPORT different clubs and new activities, and started to be
NETWORK. I TRIED DIFFERENT comfortable being uncomfortable.”
CLUBS AND NEW ACTIVITIES, AND
STARTED TO BE COMFORTABLE BEING K had difficulty finding friends their first semester
UNCOMFORTABLE. because they had only two classes on campus each
week and uses speech recognition software to do
homework, which makes studying with others
difficult. “Joining the Harry Potter Club changed
that. The club included people from all levels of
college, and I discovered I was not necessarily alone
in feeling isolated my first semester on campus.”
Also include students with disabilities
in your support network. After having THE CLUB INCLUDED PEOPLE
disagreements with her disability resource FROM ALL LEVELS OF COLLEGE,
AND I DISCOVERED I WAS NOT
office, Ann found it helpful “to talk to others NECESSARILY ALONE IN FEELING
with disabilities with similar experiences ISOLATED MY FIRST SEMESTER
to get advice because when the ADA officer ON CAMPUS.
was disagreeing with disability services and
I’d just spent three hours on the phone,
sometimes I felt like the only one dealing
with this.”

While many students express concerns about

GO OUT, MEET DIFFERENT making friends at college at first, they find their
PEOPLE, AND DO new friendships fun as well as supportive. Crystal
DIFFERENT THINGS. loved “going out, meeting different people, and
doing different things” so much that she became
president of her program’s social gathering
committee during her last year.

-5-
 CONNECT WITH PROFESSIONALS TO
BUILD YOUR SUPPORT NETWORK.
Ann encourages students to go
beyond friendships. Also, Ann
and Kate specifically state that
CONNECTING WITH PEOPLE ON
CAMPUS LETS THEM SEE WHO YOU
in addition to support from the ARE. PROFESSORS AND INSTRUCTORS
campus disability resources offices, INVEST MORE TIME AND ENERGY IN
local support from the state’s VR STUDENTS WHO MAKE CONNECTIONS
agency is essential for lower income WITH THEM (AND NOT JUST WHEN
students. When Kate was still in high AN ASSIGNMENT IS LATE!!)
school, the local VR representative,
Kevin Shea, and his service dog
approached her and her mom to
explain how they would pay for her
tuition, books, and rent to help her
reach her career goals.
Katie adds that building supportive relationships with professors is important:
“While the Office of Disability Services certainly was helpful, the most
important resource was making connections with professors, especially in my
department.” She advises new college students to “make an effort to build a
relationship with your professors so they see you as a person they want to help
be successful. And be confident in expressing
what you need to be successful.”
IN ADDITION TO SUPPORT FROM THE
CAMPUS DISABILITY RESOURCES
OFFICES, LOCAL SUPPORT FROM THE
STATE’S VR AGENCY IS ESSENTIAL
FOR LOWER INCOME STUDENTS.

-6-
LEARN TO ADVOCATE
FOR YOURSELF. LEARN ABOUT THE ADA. LEARN
ABOUT WHAT ACCESS STRATEGIES
ARE GOING TO WORK FOR YOU.
Kate advises students to learn self-advocacy skills and to DEMAND RESPECT. LEARN TO
know their legal rights as a student. ADVOCATE FOR YOURSELF.
She encourages students to “Try to set up a support
network of as many people as you can and learn your
legal rights. Learn about the ADA. Learn about what access
strategies are going to work for you. Sometimes access is
really a trial-and-error thing so don’t feel bad if one type
of access you thought might work does not actually work.
Demand respect. Learn to advocate for yourself. Know that
you are going to have to work harder than everyone else.
Expect that often your professors are not going to know the
first thing about disability and they are likely to not know the Do you know your rights?
Check out info on:
law either. That is why you need a disability services office the Americans with Disabiliti
es Act of 1990--
and a [VR] organization like VESID in your corner. Professors [Link]/publications/a
daqa/[Link]
Section 504 of the Rehabilita
may think that access and accommodations is “special [Link]/publications/a
tion Act of 1973--
daqa/[Link]
treatment” but they have to follow the law.” Have you ever talked to a
teacher about how
your disability impacts you
Ann also recommends cultivating a support community in class?
How about in life?
that understands your accommodation needs, empathizes Give it a shot.

with your experiences as a culturally deaf or disabled Do you know who can help
if you have
problems in college?
student, and can give you advice and support. Ask!!!

Here’s what I need to succeed:

•
•
•
•
•
•

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LEARN ABOUT YOURSELF. DON’T LET YOUR DISABILITY
DEFINE YOU. DON’T LOOK
While you’re in college, you’ll have a chance to AT YOUR DISABILITY AS A
learn more about yourself, both within and
BAD THING, EITHER. DON’T BE
outside classwork.
ANYBODY BUT YOURSELF.
For Nigel, this meant not letting disability be the
only part of his identity: “Find out who you are as
a person, and don’t let your disability define you.
Don’t look at your disability as a bad thing, either.
Always know you’re going to be a person at the end
of the day – don’t be anybody but yourself.”
K agrees that personal growth is part of the college
experience: “College is a great thing – it helps you
COLLEGE IS A GREAT
to figure out who you are as a person.”
THING – IT HELPS YOU TO
Kings reminds us though to “accept that education FIGURE OUT WHO YOU
and self-awareness can come in many different ARE AS A PERSON.
forms. You can learn in the classroom, but also
through study abroad or from volunteering.”

In college I would like to explore...

•
•
•
•
•
•
•

-8-
LEARN ABOUT AND
SHARE DISABILITY
HISTORY AND CULTURE.
Jason recalls the profound impact an undergraduate
course on disability culture had on him: “I took a class
about disability, equity and culture at a time when I was I THINK IT IS VERY IMPORTANT FOR
very down and negative about my disability. This helped DISABLED STUDENTS TO KNOW SOME
me a lot to better understand that it is not an individual OF THE HISTORY OF DISABILITY AND
thing and about me the whole time, but that disability SO ON, TO UNDERSTAND IT BETTER
is also a cultural thing. I think it is very important for
FOR THEMSELVES.
disabled students to know some of the history of disability
and so on, to understand it better for themselves. I think it
is good to take a course about it. You don’t have to major in
it and everything, but you will learn more about it. I would
recommend that.”
Other students value disability studies so much that they
add a disability studies concentration to their major.
Concentrated Working on
in Education, master's degrees
Language, and in Education and
Disability Disability Studies
Studies
Even if you don’t take a class,
you can explore info online about
leaders with disabilities.
Learn about Richard Branson,
Peter Knight, Bram Cohen,
Charles Schwab, Judy Heumann
Check out
[Link]/

double-majoring
in Law, Societies
and Justice, and
Disability Studies

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FIND A MENTOR.
Mentors during high school and college can be a great help to students with disabilities,
guiding students toward opportunities that might have otherwise been missed.
Ann notes that mentors are especially
MY MENTOR HELPED BY JUST important for students who do not
KNOWING THE HIGHER EDUCATION have strong social connections: “To get
AND DISABILITY ACCOMMODATIONS into a good college you need volunteer
TERMINOLOGY. I ALSO KNEW THAT MY and internship opportunities in
MENTOR COULD PROVIDE EMOTIONAL high school. Many students without
SUPPORT WHEN NEEDED.
disabilities talked about experience
and leadership, sports, etc. Disabled
students have to know how to highlight
their leadership potential, too. When a
student lacks social capital or does not
have a parent who can do that role, they
need a mentor. My mentor helped by just knowing the higher education and disability
accommodations terminology. My mentor couldn’t provide the actual advocacy piece, but
I knew that my mentor could provide emotional support when needed.”
Crystal realized college mentors could help with much more than academics. Prior to
the first semester in her college program, Crystal participated in a Mentoring Matching
Party where “we went around and
introduced ourselves and got to know
each other.” Later, each student selected
their top three mentors and was then
I DIDN’T HAVE MENTORS
matched with one of the three. Crystal
BEFORE I CAME TO COLLEGE,
says, “I didn’t have mentors before I
BUT NOW THEY HELP ME
came to college, but now they help me
WITH EVERYTHING I NEED.
with everything I need. We go out and
meet different people and do different
things. My biggest challenge has been
working on math skills and reading
skills, so I also work with my mentors to
build those skills.”

-10-
HOW TO FIND
A MENTOR.
Finding a mentor isn’t always easy, as Ann notes: “I had to be very proactive
to seek out mentors. A lot of the mentoring programs for first-generation
college students don’t go to disability student spaces. A blind friend and I
thought we would make a mentoring program since we didn’t know of
one for disabled students, and most disability services just
track students as they progress instead of offering mentoring. Places to find mentors:
We got together with some other students at other colleges, in class
some at independent living centers, and some at community advising
colleges and we started “Survive or Thrive” in California. Since at a volunteer job or intern
ship
2012, we’ve expanded to two workshops per year and social
disability resources office
events including families.”
college fitness center
Kings tells students that she more often discovers mentors
part-time job on campus
informally rather than through mentoring programs: “You
a student club or organizatio
can find a connection with almost anyone anywhere. You n
just have to be a good enough detective to find it. I didn’t campus church, Hillel, or eth
ics center
think I would necessarily connect with my boss, David, but
we started talking about
William Faulkner and
Mark Twain on my first YOU CAN FIND A CONNECTION WITH
day of work, and I was ALMOST ANYONE ANYWHERE. YOU
JUST HAVE TO BE A GOOD ENOUGH
super nerdy because
DETECTIVE TO FIND IT. ASKING
I love both of those QUESTIONS IS THE BEST WAY TO BE
authors and he really A DETECTIVE, EVEN IF THEY’RE SIMPLE
liked both authors. It was OPEN QUESTIONS...
a cool connection to find
almost right away. So
What would a college
look for ways to connect
mentor do? Check
with people, try to find out this one online
that connection. Asking program called College
Career Connect.
questions is the best
way to be a detective, even if they’re simple open questions like ‘Oh, how was [Link]

your day?’ Or ‘Oh, where do you live?’ Or ‘What do your parents do?’ A simple
connection can lead to building a bridge that could last a lifetime.”
-11-
BELIEVE IN YOURSELF
AND YOUR ABILITY TO ALWAYS STAY POSITIVE AND
COME OUT OF YOUR COMFORT
GET THROUGH DIFFICULT ZONE. DON’T LET ANYBODY
EXPERIENCES OR DISCOMFORT. TELL YOU THAT YOU CAN’T.
Nigel advises students to “always stay positive and come out of your
comfort zone. Don’t let anybody tell you that you can’t.”
Crystal also encourages students to “never let anybody tell you no.”

THE BIGGEST THING IN HAVING A Tara says, “The biggest thing in having a learning
LEARNING DISABILITY IS THAT YOU disability is that you need to advocate for yourself,
NEED TO ADVOCATE FOR YOURSELF, because other people have no idea how your brain
BECAUSE OTHER PEOPLE HAVE NO works and how you process information.”
IDEA HOW YOUR BRAIN WORKS AND
HOW YOU PROCESS INFORMATION. K tells students “Do not underestimate yourself. If you
put your mind to it, you can do it. There will be hurdles
you’ll have to jump through, but you should try because
it also helps you figure out who you are as a person.”
Finally, Ann reminds students that “Transitions are
always difficult and it is going to be uncomfortable, so I
would be worried if you felt completely fine. Learn to be
okay with that and you will pull through.”

DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE YOURSELF.

IF YOU PUT YOUR MIND TO IT, YOU
CAN DO IT. THERE WILL BE HURDLES
YOU’LL HAVE TO JUMP THROUGH, BUT
YOU SHOULD TRY BECAUSE IT ALSO
HELPS YOU FIGURE OUT WHO YOU
ARE AS A PERSON.

-12-
NOTES...

-13-
COLLEGE READINESS ASSESSMENT

-14-
-15-
-16-
COLLEGE ACTION PLAN (4 PAGES)

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-18-
-19-
-20-
QUESTIONS TO ASK THE DISABILITY
SERVICES OFFICE DURING A COLLEGE VISIT
The only way to know how a college responds to these issues important to you is to visit the campus
and ask questions. In addition to attending a tour of the college or an open house, students with
disabilities and their families should be encouraged to visit the disability services office on campus.
Questions to consider include:
• How welcoming and responsive are the staff people?
• Is the office located near the center of campus or far off on the edge of campus, where it might
be harder to access?
• What is the minimum number of courses one can take to be considered a full-time student?
You should take the minimum number of courses possible, especially the first year.
• Does the college offer a quiet place to take tests? Are you able to take essay tests on a computer?
• Does the college have a writing center? You will need a writing center to assist you in organizing
written assignments, especially long-term research papers. Check the hours of operation and
inquire whether it is professionally or peer staffed.
• Are organizational coaches available? You may need a coach to assist with staying on task with
day-to-day and long-term assignments.
• Are note takers available? How are they selected? You want a note taker that is chosen by the
professor or the learning specialist, who hands in notes to the learning specialist, where you
can pick them up anonymously.
• Does the college offer priority registration? Being able to register early will help you manage
your time better, have later start times, and schedule breaks between classes.
• Is there a contact person who will be able to assess if you are taking a balanced course load each
semester? You should avoid having too many heavy reading classes in the same semester.

Reprinted with permission from Bass Educational Service, LLC ©2017

-21-
-22-
Reprinted from Brookes Publishing [Link]

-23-
CONVERSATION STRATEGIES FOR STUDENTS
TO TALK TO PARENTS ABOUT COLLEGE

Plan what you want to say.

Think about what you want your parents to know about your goal to attend
college and why you need them to be on board.

Be direct.
Tell them there is something you want to discuss and make sure you have
their full attention.

Pick a good time to talk.

Approach them at a time when they will be able to focus on the
conversation. You can even set a time in advance, for example, “There’s
something I want to talk with you about. Can we make some time when we
eat dinner tonight to talk about it?”

Write it down first.

Write down your thoughts in a letter or email before your conversation. If
you want to send it, you can. Or, you can just use what you write to get ready
and get your thoughts organized.

Disagree without disrespect.

Remember, you are challenging ideas that your parents have had for a long
time. Be sure to use respectful language, listen to them, and stay calm.

-24-
NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS & WEBSITES
GOING-TO-COLLEGE THE NATIONAL DEAF CENTER FOR
This website provides information about living college POSTSECONDARY OUTCOMES
life with a disability. It is designed for high school stu- If you are a culturally Deaf student, deaf or hard-of-
dents and provides video clips, activities, and resources hearing, the NDC can help connect you to resources and
that can help get a head start in planning for college. information. They can also provide information about
[Link] deafness, hearing loss, and common accommodations
to any parents, high school teachers, college faculty, or
I’M DETERMINED disability services staff. For high school students, they
This website provides direct instruction, models, and also have an online training tool to help students plan
opportunities to practice skills associated with self- goals and a path to college.
determined behavior.
[Link]/
[Link]
STEP BY STEP: COLLEGE AWARENESS AND
I’M FIRST
Online community for first-generation college
PLANNING FOR FAMILIES, COUNSELORS AND
students, including stories from college students and COMMUNITIES
resources for finding colleges and getting answers to Curriculum on college awareness by the National
questions about going to college. Association for College Admission Counseling with
[Link] components for middle school, early high school, and
late high school. Includes both learning activities for
KNOWHOW2GO students and guides for leading parent workshops. A
Website by the American Council for Education with workshop on financial aid is also included.
resources to encourage primarily 8th to 10th grade [Link]/globalassets/documents/
students to prepare for college. advocacy-and-ethics/initiatives/
[Link] steps/[Link]
THE NATIONAL CENTER FOR COLLEGE THINK COLLEGE
STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES Think College focuses on information and resources
The NCCSD provides resources and technical assistance on college options for students with intellectual
to all college students with disabilities, including disability. The website has student stories, a college
undergraduate and graduate students. search directory, a resource library, and many
[Link] videos about college students with intellectual
disability. It also offers information about financial
They have an online Clearinghouse where students can aid and college planning.
get resources for free (nd DREAM, a national group run
[Link]
by college students for students
[Link]
[Link]

-25-
RECOMMENDED BOOKS
Learning Outside the Lines: Two Ivy League
Students with Learning Disabilities and ADHD
Give You the Tools for Academic Success and
Preparing Students with Disabilities for College Educational Revolution
Success: A Practical Guide to Transition Planning Jonathan Mooney and David Cole
Stan F. Shaw, Joseph W. Madaus, and Lyman L. Dukes
This book can help students with any type of
While this was written for professionals, parents disability consider how they learn best, and
and students can find everything they need to practical strategies
know about getting ready for college, and what for dealing with college-level academics.
high schools should be doing during the transition
process. It includes comprehensive information Empowering Leadership: A Systems Change
about the ADA and Section 504, and how college Guide for Autistic Students and Those with Other
disability services offices work. Disabilities by the Autistic Self-Advocacy Network.
This handbook by and for disabled students helps
develop leadership and organizing skills to foster
change on campus. Students may also find the
information helpful for dealing with administrators
when problems occur.

Navigating College: A Handbook on Self-

The K&W Guide to College Programs and
Advocacy
Services for Students with Learning Disabilities
Autistic Self-Advocacy Network or Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder,
While written for students who are on 13th (2016) Edition
the Autism Spectrum, the information Princeton Review
could easily apply to students with many
This book provides a good starting point in
other disabilities, including mental
researching the learning support services
and emotional illnesses. With tips for
and programs at more than 350 colleges and
academics, housing, social situations,
universities in the U.S.
and talking about disability with others,
it covers practical information that most
students could use during their first years
of college.

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DISABILITY SPECIFIC RESOURCES FOR COLLEGE PLANNING
BLINDNESS
A webpage from Accredited Schools Online that provides information on accommodations for students with visual impairment, tips for finding the right
school, and links to resources and scholarships
[Link]/resources/helping-students-with-visual-impairments/

A webpage for faculty at Rutgers University with information on accommodating students with visual impairment that may be useful for understanding the
many strategies that can be used
[Link]

DEAFNESS
A guide for students from Pepnet on college success for students who are deaf or hard of hearing
[Link]/sites/default/files/[Link]

MENTAL HEALTH
A downloadable guide for college students from the National Alliance on Mental Illness to begin the conversation about mental health issues during college
[Link]/collegeguide/download
A webpage from Mental Health America with information on planning for college for students with a mental health disorder
[Link]/whats-your-plan-college-mental-health-disorder

INTELLECTUAL DISABILITY
A website that provides information and resources on college for students with intellectual disability, including interviews and advice from college students
[Link]/for-students

LEARNING DISABILITIES
A guide from DO-IT on academic accommodations for students with learning disabilities
[Link]/doit/academic-accommodations-students-learning-disabilities
A webpage from [Link] that gives tips for families to ease the transition to college for students with learning disabilities
[Link]/en/school-learning/choosing-starting-school/leaving-high-school/9-steps-for-easing-the-transition-to-college
A webpage from Great Schools that provides information for families to understand college for students with learning disabilities
[Link]/gk/articles/college-planning/

ADHD
List of resources for college students with ADHD from the Attention Deficit Disorder Association
[Link]
College survival guide from ADDitude magazine, with articles and tips for students and parents
[Link]/adhd-guide/[Link]

MOBILITY
List of tips for college applicants and students with physical disabilities from U.S. News and World Report
[Link]/education/best-colleges/articles/2011/12/05/4-tips-for-college-applicants-students-with-physical-disabilities

AUTISM
A downloadable guide for autistic college students written by adults on the autism spectrum, with a focus on self-advocacy
[Link]

CHRONIC HEALTH CONDITIONS

A website by the Center for Online Education that provides information and resources on attending college for students with a chronic health condition
[Link]/for-students/chronic-health-issues/

-27-
 TEN TIPS
FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES...
TEN TIPS
FROM STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES
FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES…
Students involved in DREAM: Disability Rights, Education, Activism, and Mentoring, a national online group for
college students with disabilities, produced the following list of top tips for college students:

[Link] STUDENTS
DISABILITY ACCOMMODATIONS WITH
ARE RIGHTS, DISABILITIES
NOT SPECIAL HELP.
Ask for what you need. Advocate for yourself.
Disability accommodations are rights, not special help.
2. YOU ARE
1. AN
AskIMPORTANT AND
for what you need. VALUABLE
Advocate PART OF CAMPUS DIVERSITY.
for yourself.

Diversity includes disability.

You are an important and valuable part of campus diversity.
2. DISABILITY SERVICES O CES CAN BE GATEKEEPERS.
3. COLLEGE Diversity includes disability.

Most are good allies for students, but some are not. Demand professional, individualized, respectful services
College disability services offices can be gatekeepers.
and file3.
a complaint
Most are if youallies
good don’tfor
getstudents,
them. but some are not. Demand professional, individualized, respectful
services and file a complaint if you don’t get them.
4. FEED YOUR SOUL AND BODY - RECHARGE YOUR BATTERIES.
Balance yourFeed your time,
valuable soul and [Link] health.
energy,
4. Balance your valuable time, energy, and health.

5. STAY FOCUSED ON YOUR CAREER.

Stay focused on your career.
If it won’t
[Link]
If ityou gethelp
won’t a jobyou
orget
maintain
a job oryour passion
maintain yourfor college,
passion for don’t bother.
college, don’t bother.

6. FIND A COMMUNITY.
Find a community.
Never go6.
it alone.
Never Consider connecting
go it alone. with others
Consider connecting who
with havewho
others disabilities.
have disabilities.

7. UNIVERSALLY DESIGN
Universally YOUR
design yourOWN LEARNING.
own learning.
[Link]
Learn how Learn how you learn best, and then use your strengths and unique learning style.
learn best, and then use your strengths and unique learning style.

8. NEVER APOLOGIZE FORforYOUR

Never apologize your DISABILITY ORaccommodations.
disability or your YOUR ACCOMMODATIONS.
8.
If you apologize, people may think you are ashamed.
If you apologize, people may think you are ashamed.

9. FIGHT 9.
OPPRESSION
Ableism is justAND BULLYING
If one ofIN
us ANY
Fight oppression and bullying in any form.
one “ism.” [Link] of us are oppressed.
is oppressed,
Ableism is just one “ism.” If one of us is oppressed, all of us are oppressed.
Learn disability history.
10. LEARN
[Link] HISTORY.
Learn about the people and movements that made it possible for you to be in college.
Learn about the people and movements that made it possible for you to be in college.

This is available in other formats upon request. Funding for NCCSD and DREAM is from the Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE) at the US Dept. of Education (P116D150005).

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