College Application! (need an answer/suggestion soon)

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Hello!

So, I probably should have addressed this sooner..

I've applied for college (and gotten in, yay!). Included in the Welcome package was information for the Centre for Students with Disabilites. This will be my first time being 'acknowledged' by such a place; my ADHD was only diagnosed after I totally bombed my first year of university.

My family accepts the ADHD diagnosis. Extended family knows, but I am not sure as to the degree to which they accept/'believe' it. I intend to put ADHD and social anxiety on the Type of Disability line.

I have self-diagnosed myself with Asperger's (there was a quiz recommended to me a while back that I scored well above the
"you may have Asperger's" mark, and my sister agrees with me on it. But I haven't told my parents what I think. I am afraid that they will think I am trying to make excuses for myself. But I want to have it listed anyway, even though I have no documentation to back it up.

Should I not include it in my list, include it secretly, tell my mom what I think (she assisted me with the ADHD process), anything else? And if I tell my parents, HOW do I do it?

This makes me feel somewhat ill to think about. :

Don't put down any conditions that you have not been diagnosed with. Your college will take a dim view on self-diagnosis, even if you are certain you have it.

(imagine if you were hypochondriac... )

I think you might put "I think I have Asperger's but need help getting a diagnosis." Getting a diagnosis might be one of the things the Disabilities Dept. can help you with.

But don't tell your family, since they are negative about it.

Many colleges and universities are now requiring official documentation for any student claiming a disability of any kind, including Asperger's Syndrome.

If you need assistance at the college you are applying to, you can always stop by the Student Disability Office after you get accepted and are preparing to start the college semester...and speak to the Director, asking her to help you get evaluation for such services.

Claradoon - that's a good idea, I never thought of that. Thanks for your suggestion, I think I'll go with that.

Zsazsa - Yes, that was stated on the Disability Centre's handout-thing. I will be able to have ADHD documentation thankfully. Hopefully if the college people see that I think I have something, they can help me diagnose--or not.

That's another thing though, I am not sure if I will need AS-related help, or if anything I might need is adequately covered by ADHD assistance (in which case I wouldn't need to list AS)...

Also I just realized there is a college-related min-forum on here. Oopsie.

Can you get the accommodations you need with the ADHD diagnosis? If so, it's kind of a non-issue. If you need something Asperger's-specific, you're probably going to have to talk to the disability services office and see if they can refer you for an evaluation; but then again, if you can prove you need it, you may not need to prove you have Asperger's; you just need to show you have a diagnosis and could benefit.

Yeah, I'm just not sure what I would need that wouldn't be ADHD-related. I looked at the accomodations and I think I won't need to plead any additional diagnoses. Besides, I am not sure that [this] accomodation goes specifically with [that] disability, so it might not matter anyway...

I think I will just put on the form "ADHD, social anxiety, possible Asperger's Syndrome". Which raises another thought; is there actual possible documentation for social anxiety? Like does it have to be as officially diagnosed as AS or ADHD? As it is, I will have to recontact the doctor who made my ADHD diagnosis for documentation, and I don't know how much time that will take and I would like to have this all dealt with asap.

Who know having disabilities could be so much inconvenience and stress

I still think you could put "Diagnosed: ADHD, social anxiety. Need help getting diagnosis for Asperger's."

The thing is, I had no idea what they could offer me until they told me. Things that would never have crossed my mind but were a great help. You're second guessing them, I think. Just tell them the truth and see what they have to say.

Okay, that sounds good. Though I haven't been officially diagnosed with social anxiety either. It just seems so blindingly obvious to me that I have it that I forget about the lack of diagnosis. (And I am comfortable with it too, I don't want to NOT have it. And I think my doctor would try to convince me that I don't. He's creepy.)

Claradoon, what kind of accomodations did you have (I mean if you don't mind me asking)? I know not all schools will have the same availabilities though.

I'm looking forward to being able to receive assistance from the school, but all this unofficial vs official diagnoses with the paperwork required and whatnot is giving me a headache. I guess also cause I feel like I am on my own with regards to family support. And I don't have my own car. "Hey mom, I think I need to make a doctor's appointment?" "why?" "oh, I don't want to tell you..."

Also, I have forgotten to thank everyone for their input. So thanks!

My circumstances were different - I went to Athabasca University, which is physically located in Alberta, Canada. It's also 100% on-line and that's how I attended. It's a fully accredited university. What they did for me was allow me to communicate only by email (they have a toll-free phone number for you to talk to your prof).

They let me take exams in my own home (usually a student would go to a local college). To supervise my exams, I picked out a teacher who had an ad in my local newspaper to coach high school students - I phoned her and she agreed, so I sent her name etc. to the university and they approved it. In the middle of one exam, I sort of freaked out and I got to lie on my bed for a while. And my dog stayed. I paid her $75.

Oh, and there's this tape I use for concentration, they approved it for use during the exam. And they gave permission for the computer to anywhere in the house.

When I went to university here in Montreal, not on-line but really real - I did not go to the Mature Student Office or to the Disabilities Office. What an idiot I was. After all, I was self-sufficient, I didn't need any help, right? Wrong. Oh so very wrong.

And it's not weakness - it's just the fact that the entire institution is built for NT's. They're perfectly willing to bend rules so they fit you better, but you gotta ask. Dummy me.

I remember making enemies out of classmates who greeted me in the hall, and I ducked and hurried away because I was afraid. Well they don't think of that possibility, they think I'm a snob or something. I had some very angry classmates.

So don't be like me - get all the help you possibly can.

p.s. All this was before I knew about AS and WrongPlanet.

If you can start during the summer, I would highly recommend that as well. There will be FAR fewer people on campus, so it will be easier to get to know your way around. When fall comes, it'll feel like old hat and you won't be as nervous. The classes also will not have quite as many people in the fall, although sometimes they are more intense because you're cramming an entire semester into 3 or 4 weeks, so try to select easier courses.

It's hard to say what type of accomodation to ask for. Universities generally have a list of standard accomodations like being able to record lectures or having someone take notes for you (both of which I use). They may make other more specialized accomodations upon request such as because of my social anxiety if there is group work in class the prof assigns groups rather than forcing me to try and find one by myself. I tried a semester with no accomodations (not my brightest idea) but it did give me a good sense of what things I should ask for help with. I would suggest getting the help you know you need but don't feel bad about asking for something else later on if a new challenge comes up.

good luck

I wish you luck in getting into the college, that you wish.

She already got accepted into college.

Anyways. for the original post, I agree that nothing should be listed that you weren't formally diagnosed with.

I plan to take my sister with me during the summer to check out the campus. I will be commuting every day by bus (as will she, though she is at a different university we will be taking the same bus! yay!), so she has agreed to come with me and help me figure my way around. Plus living at home still will give me extra help from my parents. It is a September start, but I don't think it's a particularly challenging course, for me anyway. I'm going for Early Childhood Education, which you might call a special interest of mine, not really sure.

I do have a small idea of what help I might need, since I've already tried university once (and this was pre-diagnoses) so I had no help whatsoever. And I was 2 hours away from home. And in a completely different program (edit: it was Music, and of course there are performance aspects to it, including solo recitals. ACK!). I think classmates thought I was a snob too, but actually I am rather terrified about being in large groups like that, where I am expected to socialize somewhat. This year coming up is a smaller program, so professors should be more understanding I think. (right? ramble apologies. I am nervous.)

I think I will list "ADHD, need help getting diagnosed for Social Anxiety and Asperger's." and the sooner I mail the form off, the better, right?