Student finance help

If I were fifty years younger and just starting uni I would probably embrace the new technology and be a digital native.  When I was uni programming was in Algol and Fortran, we had card readers and stacks of cards (do not drop them!)  I remember when we got a modem at work, an acoustic coupler that worked at 150 baud. Not kbits or Mbits, that's 75 bits a second - each letter came up like a teleprinter if you know what that is.

Interesting factoid - the first communications satellite, Telstar was launched in 1962 and its total memory for the operating system, data handling, and everything, was reputed to be less than 1 Mb. (Windows 11 OS needs 64Gb for the program and at least 4Gb RAM!)

Ian said:

Some people find MS Notebook helpful ... I use it occasionally but could probably make better use of it if I am honest.

It is excellent when you have a touchscreen and stylus.

I use a Surface Pro with a stylus and it is great to make freehand notes, draw stuff and pull other text / doc / images / videos etc into one file - so it represents how my mind works in some stages of a project.

Its a shame the laptop is quite breakable though.

Does your son have an EHCP?  If so, this is valid for his further education. Just send a copy of the EHCP and the latest review. If not, which is more likely for a more academically able student, maybe the SENCo at his school (or equivalent at FE College) could write a brief letter explaining his issues and accommodations. Does his school have a dyslexia specialist teacher? A letter from them would be very useful. I realise we are in the summer break now, but the application for DSA can be made after he has started uni and the Learning Support Team or whatever they call it where he is going will be able to help. When I was uni I had a report from a clinical psychologist confirming my ADHD. (I was not diagnosed as autistic at the time)  I had a short meeting with a specialist from Learning Support, and they wrote something. But that was 25 years ago and things may be different now.

When I was at uni doing my social work course I got DSA to pay for a set of books so I could mark them up and annotate them, and some help with a new computer when my old one died. He can also get a mentor to work with him. Other people have mentioned mind mapping software, which is useful. I recommend all my students to get Grammarly - this checks spelling and grammar, and there is a free version and a slightly more functional paid version. Try the free version first. Maybe look at software which keeps track of references and citations. Some will actually put them in the required format, e.g. Harvard or APA ready to cut and paste into the reference list.

There are a lot of utilities in MS365 or Office that help neurodivergent students (and lecturers) - I use the Outlook calendar and the ToDo function, together with the same app on my mobile phone. Some people find MS Notebook helpful ... I use it occasionally but could probably make better use of it if I am honest.

Chester has such a pleasant campus, lots of nice gardens. I was there for a conference. My daughter is at the end of her second year at university. The accommodations she has had from the university have been useful.

Hello, I can share my experience applying for financial support at SOAS University of London.

Thank you. It's such as shame everything is so uncertain at the moment. I will contact the university and ask to talk to the autism officer. I appreciate your advice and support.

Thank you for your reply. The GP surgery has said it can confirm the diagnosis but they cannot say what his difficulties are as they haven't experience if him. I am worried as the DSA application asks how it affects him. I will contact the university (Chester) to ask about transition, but I fear at the moment things are a bit up in the air!

I do like the idea of him having weekly mentoring.

The official diagnostic report was the only evidence they needed from me.

If you're in doubt whether this is suitable due to your son's age, SFE have closed down their call centre due to Covid-19. I'd contact the autism officer at he uni your son plans to study at and ask if you need to send off the medical form instead (see link). This is a very short form that your GP can sign when things return to normal.

https://www.practitioners.slc.co.uk/products/full-time-undergraduate-education/full-time-disabled-students-allowances/application-and-supporting-forms/

I would advise going to see your GP. SFE will often accept a GP letter stating a diagnosis. It's important to apply for DSA because it will provide weekly mentoring and potentially study skills support. Have you contacted the University he's applied to as they may have an induction programme for new starters with ASD? 

Thank you. Can I ask...it the first instance they want proof from professional about his difficulties. He's not seem a professional since diagnosis....what should I do?

Yes, I have. I've found it to be helpful and the whole process has been easy. 

My only advice would be to have a look at what you could be awarded beforehand, as the needs assessor won't have time to go through everything. For example, there's the choice between at least two mind mapping pieces of software (Inspiration or MindView are the main ones), they tend to just show you the one they prefer.