Accommodations at university?

It is extremely difficult sometimes for people who have autism to go to the classes on campus at university.  Things are improved by doing course online. Some people struggled at school but as they were forced to go felt they didn’t have a choice and people felt like they wanted to get out of school because of various difficulties (such as bullying, feeling really tired a lot but nowhere to lie down, frequent class changes and rooms, changing the place where sitting in class, difficulty being in class and trying to learn in the difficult environment), but couldn’t. At university, being more independent, everything is new and difficult and this means people need a lot of support with getting to the campus and attending. People also need help with shopping and various other things including budgeting and socialising.

Yes, it can prove extremely tough going.  An online course would be easier, but in this case the person has already struggled through most of the course and the extreme anxiety and difficult feelings have intensified for the last year, returning after a long break due to issues relating to undiagnosed autism (now diagnosed).  

Shopping and budgetting is OK, but anything relating to socialising, or other interactions such as group work or being in crowds on campus is extremely difficult.  Warning emails over non attendance are now landing.  All of the issues have become very intense following negative experiences and strong memories from the first years of the course.  I'm not sure what the disability officer might suggest but I have the feeling it's likely to be shot down as useless due to the high anxiety and anger over the predicament.     

If that's the case then of course the student needs the support to help them get to the classes to finish the course, or provide an alternative way of completing the course.  If someone is struggling to attend campus and to attend group work sessions then it would probably help firstly to talk to the person and try to get them to explain why they are finding it difficult and what they would find helpful.  It is possible, in some cases, to complete the course (that isn't online) if the correct support is in place.  Support that would be helpful includes-having a mentor, having someone to accompany to the classes, having someone in the class who understands, understanding that working in a group is sometimes extremely difficult (due to difficulty knowing how to contribute, slow to follow what's happening in the group due to not following the conversation activities fast enough etc.), allowing the person to leave if needed, making sure not too noisy/bright  (if applicable) etc.

The worst case scenario would be that even though tutors could see that someone is struggling to attend they would just let them try again the next year and then to failure again because the support was not in place. Even there is the possibility of a person not eating because they can't get to the shop.  So it is important, when a student is seen to be struggling with attending the campus that they are supported or given an alternative option to get a qualification. It is, of course, different and extremely difficult when autism is undiagnosed because that means that it can often be difficult for a lot of people to realise the extent of the person's difficulties but sometimes, a random person will notice and then leads to realisation that one's whole life that was the issue that was occurring and the reason why so many things were difficult.  Being in crowds can be torturous-too much information all at once.

Often, people just need someone who understands to accompany them and sometimes people feel that they need someone to accompany them wherever they go because people who have autism sometimes have not grown up in the same way some other people have (it is a neurodevelopmental condition after all) and require/feel that they require someone to accompany them places such as university campus, shopping, anywhere else that they feel they can't manage alone etc.  Of course, if it is difficult to make friends (sometimes, don't know the extent, but sometimes due to bullying, ostracism, ignoring, etc.) and this makes it even more difficult and different for the experiences at university.  Even if a university is aware of an issue, they don't always offer support and if they do, it is vital that communication issues are understood in setting up and understanding the said support.  Many people who have autism find it extremely difficult to place themselves in the meaning of the social world and how it all works together.  This means that they may not understand why people are thinking or behaving the way they are. 

People should understand that life is difficult enough without warning emails and the like.  Of course, negative experiences and memories of them (people who have autism sometimes remember things more vividly) often impact on the next endeavour as is often the case with humanity in general.  Person-centred support should be the thing that is happening and sometimes it does and sometimes it doesn't.  So what will happen next with the issue of being on campus and attending? Has any of what I have suggested helped?

Jenny Butterfly said:

am really hoping that the Disability Officer will automatically pick up on much of this

It's always best to write everything down you want to get across.  We all view the world differently, therefore, this will remove the chance of any miscommunication. 

Jenny Butterfly said:

am really hoping that the Disability Officer will automatically pick up on much of this

It's always best to write everything down you want to get across.  We all view the world differently, therefore, this will remove the chance of any miscommunication.