Colleges with comprehensive disabilities produce more successful stories for students with disabilities however the unfortunate thing is sometimes the students who would benefit the most from this support get rejected. There are many reasons why students can be rejected. Often the simple but disappointing reason is that their IQ score is regrettably below what the admission teams require. However, it can also be because the student didn’t make the right academic and personal decisions. This can be very disappointing as often their decisions come from the recommendation of their IEP teams. In this piece, I will offer advice based on my personal experiences to help you have the best chance to be accepted into these schools and programs.
One of the first things I would suggest is to always take full inclusion courses which means your courses are with non-disabled peers too. The admission teams are aware that in partial inclusion sections, there is a greater chance that the level of work required is less rigorous as these classes are for just learning-disabled students. For example, every interview team requested I bring three research papers and a teacher recommendation from a class that I struggled with in the interview. In addition, each interview team was so complimentary about the work I presented and was highly impressed with my recommendation as they could see I had an incredible work ethic and the determination to succeed in college. Dean’s Arch Admission Director even told me it was my academic choices( and how I presented tremendous commitment to my academics that led to my acceptance.
Next,I would recommend attending a summer program for at least two of your high school summers. This is especially true for students with an NVLD who sometimes face executive functioning issues and social skills deficits. Having this experience helps prove students can work through their difficulties without direct support from their parents. In addition, it shows that they can adjust to working with new adults and form friendships with new people. For example,e I attended a 6-week summer enrichment program at the Eagle Hill School, a boarding school for Learning Disabled students, from 9-11th grade. Here I needed to do things like organize my room, use a room key, wake up in the morning on my own, from friendships, and ask for extra help without my parent’s support As a result the Dean’s ARCH program and admission team could see that I would be committed to succeeding in a comprehensive support program. I learned how important this was at my in-take meeting with the ARCH Director as she talked about how my Eagle Hill experience added to my application as it proved I was very committed to overcoming my disability and being part of something was a value of mine. These are two important pieces of not just the ARCH program mission but many other comprehensive support programs.
Another suggestion is to stop the use of teacher assistant services or at least just have it on your IEP for courses where fine motor skills are required such as science labs and art courses. The college’s and the support program admission teams understand students with an NVLD and similar disabilities will likely need direct support to keep up with fine motor tasks in these classes. However, for academic purposes, they want to see a greater level of independence as once you arrive at college this type of support will be limited or nonexistent. For example, Dean College only provides teaching assistance services, usually by an upperclassman, for their science labs as they are all hands-on. This is a mistake that many resource room teachers and parents make as the student does greatly benefit from this service however it doesn’t prepare them for life after high school. Fortunately, my parents knew Teacher Assistant services, while helpful, had their negatives too so we switched to part-time support in 10th grade, and by the middle of 11th grade we removed the service. At first, my resource room teacher was worried by this move but she quickly became impressed with how we knew how to prepare for my future.
Now to wrap up Part A, keep in mind following these academic decisions doesn’t completely mean you will automatically be accepted; however it will greatly increase your chances. The hard part is that there are a lot of deserving candidates for a limited amount of space in the comprehensive support programs which is disappointing as should be available to all college-bound students with an NVLD and other learning disabilities. So, while all of this may seem hard I greatly believe, that once you receive your first acceptance letter you will be very happy you made these choices.
Eileen
Eileen is a Project Social Ambassador and blogger for The NVLD Project. She loves helping others understand they can achieve their goals and dreams through hard work and dedication.
