What is it like to go to college with autism or another disability?

[Jenisautistic]

I am trying to figure out whether not I can go to a college program for people with disabilities in my area


It is called Impact u


ImpactU

I was wondering what it’s like for other people here who have disabilities such as autism.

 

[Streetwise]

I tolerated it !but I went with people who were much older than me !I couldn't have gone if they've been younger than me !,the college I went to !but I tolerated was almost around the corner from my house ,the first one I went to was quite a distance away !because I didn't want to come into contact with people I have gone to school !with! ,you have to get used to the fact that the teacher is not going to be asking you have you done work !you have to make sure you do it yourself and hand in on time !,tell them if you have any problems with maths or English! it's very disheartening to get red! pen all over your work! because you can't spell or your English comprehension isn't good.
what I liked about it !was I had a choice whether I wanted to go or not !ask people about the facilities !whether the toilet facilities maintained very well, are the chairs you'll be sitting on for hours suitable!

 

[NothingToSeeHere]

I really enjoyed university. It was stressful and I struggled with the very social and hectic environment but it was also brilliant to spend my time studying what at the time was my special interest and having that interest in common with the other people on my course made making a friend or two easier than it ever had been before. I particularly enjoyed my MSc as it was the first time in my life that almost everyone I was spending time with was as intelligent and committed to their work as me, even group projects were fun!

 

[Mia]

I loved being in the library and looking at all those books, it's where I spent a good deal of my time. Digging through the stacks and discovering new and old ideas and concepts. There's an entire world in there, a record of peoples thoughts, ideas, perspectives. You could spend your entire life in there just reading. Navigating everything else, people, classes, teachers, buildings, schedules, meals, laundry, jobs, was hectic but exciting at times.

 

[Cinnamon115]

I think it will be different for everyone depending on the college you go to. My first college I liked better because it was bigger. Because of the large size, they had more support services and I was easily able to get help when I needed it. The college I'm at now is much smaller, with only 2,000 or so students. This means they either don't have the money or the people to have some of the supports a larger school may have.

Also, I highly recommend finding out if you can have your own room at college. I had a roommate my first year and the lack of privacy was very hard to deal with. If your school doesn't offer single rooms, ask if they have medical singles. These are single rooms you can get if you have a medical reason. For me, that was my sleeping problems. At my first college, it wasn't too hard to get a medical single but it did cost a little extra. Having privacy was worth the extra paperwork and money though.

 

[Laura O]

I loved college but had to ease into it slowly. I was undiagnosed all throughout school and had experienced a lot of social problems that had led me to drop out of high school. I was sure I couldn't handle anything academic, but my parents convinced me to take a few classes in an area of interest at the community college. I loved it. I slowly worked up to taking a full schedule of classes and lived at home. After I got my Associates I transferred to a 4 year school. I graduated and did very well. Socially it was a mixed bag, but I enjoyed the academics and getting to take interesting classes.

 

[Suzanne]

I survived the best I could and that was not knowing that I could be on the spectrum.

If one has a good support system behind them, then college should be fun.