Sometimes, students with Learning Difficulties think that going abroad to university isn’t for them. I say wait a minute, let’s stop and think about it for a few minutes. The UK might be a great place for them. Why? For starters, students have a focus of study and generally do not spend time studying the Liberal Arts as we do here in the US. So, if a student has a keen interest in Economics, then Econ it is, or Business, or Fashion Design- that is exactly the course of study.. There are no other courses like English 101 that need to be taken, it is just all that course related. Second, there are fewer courses per year that need to be taken.
We know in the US, there are support services offered to students with Learning Difficulties (I use that terminology because that is what the UK calls it, US uses Learning Disabilities which has a different meaning in the UK). There are supports in the UK as well. How students access these supports is a bit different than in the US.
On the UK application (called UCAS), there is a place for students to disclose their learning, physical or mental health issues. This is disclosed clearly-whether it is dyslexia, ADHD, dyscalculia, or even a physical issue, like IBS, epilepsy, hearing impairment, diabetes, etc. helps in the ease of gaining access to support. In addition, mental health access is the same-state clearly- anxiety, PTSD and the list can continue on. In this manner, students have the ability to gain support services quicker than if leaving this off the application. From what I am told, this information does not go to the universities until after the student has accepted their place.
What is the student’s responsibility in this? For one, the student must be able to self advocate their needs. They need to know who they are in terms of difficulty and what adjustments they may need (terminology-in the US, we use the terminology ‘accommodation’ – like extended time, separate room for testing, etc., in the UK, accommodation refers to just that- accommodation for room and board). Students need to bring their updated evaluations or medical information as well.
The universities have ‘coaches’, whose qualifications may vary from university to university. And part of the homework a student needs to do is to find out the background of the university’s support system. This is possibly easier said than done. An alternative or companion to this is to hire an outside consultant to assist- like Canopy or Focus Collegiate. That can be very helpful.
Also, remember that the layout of the curriculum will be a bit different. Unlike the US, there are not as many ‘short’ assignments that count as marks. The curriculum may not be laid out week by week. There may be one exam and maybe a project. As well, the readings and responsibilities will be given at the start of the term and the students are responsible for managing their own schedules when it comes to reading assignments. On the plus side, some universities employ the tutorial system, others a system of small group gatherings after large lectures. It’s important to attend these. Lots to gain from these sessions and much guidance is given here- as well it may be that students will find out what to read and when.
There is what is called ‘Fresher’s Week’, akin to our orientation (and in many cases, an international orientation) prior to beginning university. This is not to be missed. This is where students learn to sign on to the National Health System (NHS), societies (clubs in our terms) and how important these are in terms of life on campus), opening checking accounts, etc. This is where students often make their first friends.
Finally, since students live in dorms their first year often with a shared kitchen, it may be beneficial to learn to cook so students don’t live on cup o’ noodles or go out or grab sandwiches from the local grocer. They will have to learn to convert our system of cups and teaspoons into liters and ml- not a bad skill to have, since we are the only country using the ‘cup/teaspoon’ system.
There is a lot that is satisfying about living and learning in the UK. There are many student discounts, making this quite possibly the most least expensive time to live in the UK.