Approval for Accommodations

SDS has a rigorous, three-part process that must be completed before a student’s request for accommodations and access services can be reviewed and confirmed.

After official admittance to the university, the student must self-disclose the need for access services and accommodations to SDS by completing and submitting an application for services.

The student must then complete an initial interview with an SDS staff member. Legally an interactive process must be conducted when reviewing requests for accommodations. This requirement was implemented because no two people experience disability in the same way. Each person is uniquely impacted by a diagnosed disorder and the initial interview allows SDS to get more information from each student regarding the student’s individual functional limitations caused by the diagnosed disability, the types of academic barriers created by those limitation, study habits, history of accommodations, etc.

Finally, the student is required to submit external documentation from an appropriate, licensed professional that supports a current, disability-related need for the requested accommodation(s). The types of external documentation considered include, but are not necessarily limited to, student self-report; doctor’s letters and medical reports; psycho-educational evaluations; faculty and SDS staff member observations; IEPs or 504 Plans; and other educational or teacher generated reports.

Once all three components of the application process are completed, SDS will complete a comprehensive review of the request. The review process conducted by SDS is holistic in nature and values the unique experiences and history of each individual student. Accommodations are provided based on the impact of a disorder, not only on the diagnosis of a disorder.