Accommodations in Grad School

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Hi, all! I was recently diagnosed (at 23) with both ADHD and Asperger's. This diagnosis came at (your pick) an extremely fortunate/unfortunate time in my life: I've just started a terminal MA program. I know full well that there are certain relatively small accommodations I could get that would significantly improve my work. But I'd like your feedback on whether I can revise these, add to these, or should even consider removing some of these from my list.

So, here it goes, in no particular order:

1) Flexibility with my forgetfulness. Sometimes I will forget to bring HW, papers, books, etc. The AS side of me wants to be extremely organized. I have lists and lists, calendar schedules, etc. But even medicated the ADHD side of me is incredibly forgetful. Just yesterday I forgot to eat any food until 5 PM. Obviously this is not about caring, but just a problem that will require a good deal of work on my part. I've talked to my graduate advisor about this one in particular (she's also a prof. for one class this semester) and she's fine with me forgetting my book, although I forgot to ask about the other aspects.

2) Understanding and working with overactive/underactive participation. I tend to be one of those more extroverted Aspies most days, especially when it comes to my special interest(s). I love the truth, and will go full throttle towards it. Thus, I tend to overshare. However, when called on to read passages, etc., I feel put on the spot. I can go from being the annoying guy who always answers/asks questions to being extremely awkward when it comes to reading. I freeze. I stutter. It's horrible.

3) Ability to take short breaks. I get sensory overwhelm sometimes. In a class on Tuesday, 30 feet from the professor, the smell of her marker was enough to set me off. This same professor is nice enough to let me step out for a few minutes to calm myself down. But in any other class, that might have been the end of my attention span for the day.

4) Ability to check iPhone. I use a program called Evernote (awesome for those us of who are ultra-forgetful) and have put some CBT self-therapeutic references in there. It's becoming a sort of assistive device for me. Any time I have something that is becoming too overwhelming, I have strategies (which I have a hard time remembering or implementing otherwise) that are written down for me. It'd be great to use that without seeming interruptive.

5) Recording pen for note-taking. I got this Livescribe smartpen that will allow me to record notes simultaneously while I write them down, and then playback the lecture from where I wrote in the notebook. It's incredible. I use this because I have undiagnosed presumed dysgraphia and because my auditory processing suffers from both ADHD and AS. I don't trust others to be notetakers for me, but I'd prefer to avoid asking every single professor if recording is allowed.

6) Computer for written, English-language exams. This will happen seldom, but I am in an undergraduate-level course right now that will require a written exam. I can quantitatively show that my written exams are done better on the computer. On the GRE I received a 6.0/6.0 on the analytical writing; on the CBEST (a joke of a test) I got a 51/100 on the writing. The differences between the two tests are two: while the GRE is more difficult, it is also computer-based. Talk about your disparity. I also specify English-language because I am doing a lot of math. I don't think I'll need a computer for that (although I am learning LaTeX), as math exams are usually not very long. I'd appreciate thoughts on this latter part, too.

7) Ability to sit near the front. This follows from the attentional, auditory processing problems mentioned above. If possible, sitting near the front and towards the side would be best. The more students near me, the worse my attention.

I think that covers it, although I have a bad feeling I'm forgetting something. I decided, against the advice of my school's disability services office, to inform my graduate advisor. She was incredibly understanding, and offered that the department as a whole is similarly incredibly understanding. I'm lucky enough to be studying philosophy, which is a field inhabited by many logically-minded AS-lite individuals.

Anyway, let me know what you think about the above. My doctor will be working with me next week to get these accommodations written up and into the school.

Thanks in advance!

Welcome to WP!

There are several public universities in the US now offering special programs for people with autism - Univ of Alabama (Tuscaloosa), Eastern Kentucky Univ, Marshall Univ, Western Kentucky Univ and several others.

http://autism.change.org/blog/view/us_c ... _students#

Requesting accommodations and the subsequent disclosure were not helpful in my graduate program. In fact, I would argue that disclosure created more problems than I ever had as an undergrad at another school.

My conclusion was that I should have paid more attention to the nature of the program/department and recognized that disclosure would be a negative. I didn't read the situation well at all. In the end, I went without requesting specific accommodations, though they might have helped. It wasn't worth the notion that I was in someway not "up to the tasks" in class.

The M.A. program I completed was flexible and supported my needs well. I can't praise that university or my undergraduate program enough. The Ph.D has been a miserable experience, which is one reason I rushed to complete before most of my cohorts. I had no desire to take one day longer than necessary.

It's all about the faculty in a given program. Each school / department has been unique.

In general, graduate programs are more about the relationships you develop with your faculty. If you have good relationships, then you are more likely to find faculty who will support your studies and research. If you convince your faculty that you are wasting their time, then you will find yourself without that critical support. That being said, I suspect that disclosing your diagnoses would be fine, as long as you make clear to your mentor(s) that you are not using it as a crutch. I've seen people with disabilities take advantage of their accommodations in order to perform stellar academic work. I've also seen people use those accommodations as an excuse for why their work was always subpar. As long as your professors believe you fall within the former category, you should be fine, particularly if the accommodations are able to address your particular issues. As a final note, I have never been officially diagnosed, and so had not disclosed any of the problems I was having. However, I had been experiencing considerable anxiety before meeting with my dissertation advisor, which was beginning to hinder my progress enough that my advisor mentioned it to me. I was eventually prescribed an anti-anxiety medication, and I mentioned that to my advisor by way of describing how I was addressing my anxiety. He commended me on the decision to seek help for the anxiety, and we continued with our work. Whether you disclose or not should probably depend on whether you can expect this kind of reaction from your advisor.

One of the things to not forget is that you can and should change advisers if there are problems. My department underwent a lot of turmoil due to cuts and changes -- including a move from one campus to another. The situation led several faculty members to change departments. I dislike change, so the mess certainly affected me. I actually remain on the original campus and teach there while completing the dissertation.

I have changed advisers and changed several committee members. That's normal for students, regardless of special needs or not.

Having someone who does pay attention to your progress is important. Shared interests help, but I admit that the new department arrangement doesn't match my interests. That's life in academia.

And yes, I've been told I'm not social enough. I do not go to events and never would.