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Note: If you are looking for information
about how to request accommodations or get access to
services, please click on the "How
Do I Request Accommodations?" page to
answer most of your questions.
Does Rutgers offer services for
students with disabilities?
For any student who has been deemed eligible for special
services, Rutgers provides accommodations and/or modifications
in order to ensure that all students have an equal opportunity
to participate in all Rutgers programs, services, and
activities. The purpose of accommodations is not to
ensure success, but rather to provide access and equal
educational opportunity.
Do I have to disclose my disability
to anyone at Rutgers?
You are not required to disclose your disability to
the university. However, if you apply to the Office
of Disability Services and are approved for accommodations
after you have begun your study at Rutgers, you will
not receive any retroactive accommodations on work completed
before the approval for accommodations was made. Documentation
of your disability will only be shared with relevant
Rutgers faculty, staff or administration on a need-to-know
basis.
What are some of the services Rutgers
offers?
Services for students approved by the appropriate review
committee may include:
1. accessible classrooms
2. course aids
3. housing accommodations
4. mobility training
5. transportation assistance
Please note that services and accommodations are only
offered to students who are approved for them through
the documentation process. For more information on this
process, please go to the "How
Do I Request Accommodations?" page
When should I submit my documentation?
The sooner, the better, as the documentation review
process may take up to 30 days. Thus, you are encouraged
to initiate the process as early as possible.
At my last school, I received different
or more accommodations than Rutgers is willing grant me.
Why is there such a difference in services between Rutgers
and my last school?
High schools often offer services and accommodations
meant to help ensure a student's success. At college,
the governing laws dictate that a university simply
not discriminate against students with disabilities
and provide access to curriculum. As a result, the services
that a college provides may be vastly different from
those to which you were accustomed in high school. For
more information on this subject, please click on the
link here to "IDEA,
IEP'S, and Section 504 Plans: What Happens in College?"
Similarly, you may find that services at Rutgers are
different than those you might have received at another
post-secondary institution. This is not unusual; colleges
may have differing philosophies on accommodations or
some schools may be able to offer access to more extensive
services.
If you have been denied an accommodation you received
at a previous school, some of the reasons for this may
include the following:
the documentation does not meet the university's guidelines
for such documentation
the requested accommodation is in conflict with the
academic policies of the student's college or professional
school
providing the accommodations would fundamentally alter
the program, course, or activity
the accommodation being requested is not supported by
the documentation
providing the accommodation would pose a direct threat
to the student or to others
providing the accommodation would constitute an undue
administrative or financial burden pursuant to the criteria
established under the ADA and/or Section 504
the accommodation is in opposition to the educational
philosophy of the university
Is it ever too late to request
accommodations?
There is no limit set on when a student can begin the
documentation process to apply for accommodations; some
students don't even get identified with a learning disability
or other disabling condition until their senior year.
However, as stated elsewhere on this page, accommodations
will not be provided retroactively, and grades will
not be changed after a student is approved for accommodations.
Students who have used accommodations at their previous
institution and who choose not to apply for accommodations
when they arrive at Rutgers should know that there is
no opportunity to retake exams or courses if they are
unsatisfied with their grades. Even if a student can
establish that he or she had a disability at the time
of the course in question, or used accomodations at
a previous school, Rutgers will generally not expunge
or re-examine coursework completed before the student
was reviewed and approved for accommodation.
If you have been approved for accommodations, you will
have to abide by certain timelines depending upon the
kind of accommodation you need (e.g. sign language interpreter).
Such information will be provided by your Coordinator
for Students with Disabilities and is also available
in the Student and
Coordinator Manual.
Do I have to use all of my accommodations
in every class?
Some accommodations may not be appropriate for all
classes. For example, if you have been approved to use
a blank sheet of paper as a placeholder on multiple
choice exams, and the instructor gives only essay exams,
then the accommodation is irrelevant.
If you choose, however, not to use an accommodation
in a given class, then you will not be given the chance
for a re-test or a make-up assignment with accommodations
at a later date.
Can I request an accommodation directly
from my professor, before I have been approved for accommodations?
No. You should not request academic accommodations
from faculty unless you have been approved by the appropriate
documentation review committee and have received a Letter
of Accommodation from your Coordinator for Students
with Disabilities.
If I get approved, who informs my
instructors about my accommodations?
You do. If you are approved, you are responsible for
promptly picking up your Letter of Accommodation from
your Coordinator for Students with Disabilities, meeting
with each of your instructors and providing each of
them with a copy of the letter. You and your professor
should then discuss how the listed accommodations will
be implemented.
What if my professor refuses to
provide an accommodation listed on my Letter of Accommodation?
Contact your Coordinator for Students with Disabilities
as soon as possible to resolve the matter. Avoid questioning
your instructor about why you were not accommodated.
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