Through elementary and middle school I had physical and academic accommodations for my premature birth (smaller desk, extra time on exams due to coordination problems, snacks during the day to keep my calorie intake up, etc.) but nothing for my autism, because I wasn't diagnosed at the time. In high school I dropped the accommodations because I was embarrassed about needing them, and hated feeling different and singled out. I made it through my first two and a half years of college without accommodations, but after I got my diagnosis during the spring semester of my junior year, I signed up and got them back again. I got double time in a private room for my exams, and it helped immensely, especially in math, which I struggle with, and can never finish in the normal time limit given. I'm taking the GRE (graduate school entrance exam) in January, and am getting double time in my own private space, with extra breaks for it. It'll be helpful, because I've been practising the quantitative (math) section using workbooks, and it's difficult to finish in the standard allotted half hour, so the hour I'm getting will ensure that I don't fail because I couldn't finish in time. I really hate it when NTs get angry and claim that people who need testing accommodations are getting an unfair advantage. We're not, we're just levelling the playing field so that we have the same opportunity for success as they do.
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"Survival is insufficient" - Seven of Nine
Diagnosed with ASD level 1 on the 10th of April, 2014
Rediagnosed with ASD level 2 on the 4th of May, 2019
Thanks to Olympiadis for my fantastic avatar!