coping at university

It is reassuring to see ColinCat-mod's favourable experience of his son being in halls of residence. There's no reason why it cannot work to advantage, but my perception is that, while support is provided on the education side, it doesn't always extend to the social issues of living in halls.

I personally benefitted tremendously from living in halls (and being a hall tutor) as a postgraduate, because it seemed to be just the right environment to resolve a lot of personal issues.  Having been a lecturer in later life I haven't had the contact with modern halls, but being involved in disability support, am acquainted with the issues that flare up.

Some universities still have halls with central catering but these are rarer now. Most universities have flats of six to eight students with a shared kitchen. It is commoner now to have an en suite shower and toilet. It is still possible to have hall rooms with shgared toilets and washing facilities, or shared between two rooms with two doors, and there are still halls with shared rooms.

The support infrastructure has declined. In the years following "in loco parentis" (ie since the age of majority went down to 18) many halls retained good support infrastructure such as wing tutors. Gradually this has reduced to a non-interventionist approach where there are tutors or sub-wardens in place to stop riotous behaviour but little else. Cleaners often end up as surrogate mums, but that has been diminished in recent years.

It means that an AS student could find themselves in a shared flat with others who are too noisy or who don't like having an AS flatmate, and that can make things difficult, especially if the contract for the room prevents changeovers or withdrawal without a penalty.

Not all universities seem to include halls in the support given to disabled students, beyond providing accessible accommodation for physical disability.

Therefore you need to ask questions. Most universities on open days will show off a "typical room" but you really need to know more than that. It is no use waiting until the start of term for your child to find out about complications. You need to find out what support there is and whether the halls staff are familiar with autistic spectrum or other disabilities. You may well find that admin staff in the education side, and teaching staff are briefed, but not hall staff or cleaners. You need to know what shared facilities are there, and what alternatives there are for eating.

At the moment I don't think hall accommodation is considered in disability support work in universities. They are into this "level playing field" approach, based on the social model of disability. Provide coloured handouts, note takers, and extra time in exams, but 1 to 1 support may be limited. 

It is reassuring to see ColinCat-mod's favourable experience of his son being in halls of residence. There's no reason why it cannot work to advantage, but my perception is that, while support is provided on the education side, it doesn't always extend to the social issues of living in halls.

I personally benefitted tremendously from living in halls (and being a hall tutor) as a postgraduate, because it seemed to be just the right environment to resolve a lot of personal issues.  Having been a lecturer in later life I haven't had the contact with modern halls, but being involved in disability support, am acquainted with the issues that flare up.

Some universities still have halls with central catering but these are rarer now. Most universities have flats of six to eight students with a shared kitchen. It is commoner now to have an en suite shower and toilet. It is still possible to have hall rooms with shgared toilets and washing facilities, or shared between two rooms with two doors, and there are still halls with shared rooms.

The support infrastructure has declined. In the years following "in loco parentis" (ie since the age of majority went down to 18) many halls retained good support infrastructure such as wing tutors. Gradually this has reduced to a non-interventionist approach where there are tutors or sub-wardens in place to stop riotous behaviour but little else. Cleaners often end up as surrogate mums, but that has been diminished in recent years.

It means that an AS student could find themselves in a shared flat with others who are too noisy or who don't like having an AS flatmate, and that can make things difficult, especially if the contract for the room prevents changeovers or withdrawal without a penalty.

Not all universities seem to include halls in the support given to disabled students, beyond providing accessible accommodation for physical disability.

Therefore you need to ask questions. Most universities on open days will show off a "typical room" but you really need to know more than that. It is no use waiting until the start of term for your child to find out about complications. You need to find out what support there is and whether the halls staff are familiar with autistic spectrum or other disabilities. You may well find that admin staff in the education side, and teaching staff are briefed, but not hall staff or cleaners. You need to know what shared facilities are there, and what alternatives there are for eating.

At the moment I don't think hall accommodation is considered in disability support work in universities. They are into this "level playing field" approach, based on the social model of disability. Provide coloured handouts, note takers, and extra time in exams, but 1 to 1 support may be limited.