I am 30 now and back when I was 18 I started community college major in food and nutrition associates degree and I couldn’t finish the degree because I failed most of my classes especially math and anatomy and physiology needed for my degree. I went to college for only two years. Then I ended up getting a dietary management degree. I couldn’t pass the dietary manager test due to my disability. I have a mild intellectual disability and autism which caused me to fail these classes due to my mild intellectual disability. I never wanted accommodations in college because I was embarrassed and didn’t want to be made fun of and now that I’m older I regret not accepting the accommodations to help me pass my classes. Now I don’t have a good paying job and my parents won’t let me go back to college to finish my degree but I’m interested in going back. What are my options and why would I didn’t do well because of my disability?
In our county, we have vocational rehabilitation services. I worked at a high school as a speech pathologist and our team always invited the County rehab services team when our students turned 16.
They began a file that would follow the students into adulthood.
They provided job coaching, college counseling and career development/ support services, and housing support.
Your county or state may provide the same or similar services.
Your situation is NOT a sink or swim situation.
You need support and life coaching which you have already provided through your taxes.
Contact your county office administrators to get information. Be vigilant about seeking service. The support system is supposed to follow you for life but with federal cuts in funding to the states, it may be tough, but keep looking.
Ok I will do that. Thank you!! And we have spoke before like 11 years ago when I asked questions when I was in college and I’m on the autism spectrum. How can this still affect me in my 30’s like now with my future in college if I decide to go again and in my career? And how can my mild intellectual disability affect my academic performance?
I don’t think anyone here can answer that. My son at Michigan roomed with an autistic student that got 2 engineering degrees. Everyone comes in different flavors. You would need to be evaluated to determine what services you will need and how well it would work out for you. Your only limitation is your ability and yourself.
Yes true but I struggle accidentally because of my mild intellectual disability. So what should I do about this? It affects me finishing a degree.
You’ll be reassessed and the team will then present your results to you (and your family if you wish).
They will formulate a plan of action with you being the manager.
If you have an intellectual disability, they’ll provide, tutors/notetakers who will provide strategies and supportive student assistance. They can give you longer time on tests and can present tests auditorally.
You have to work with a job coach, initially, daily. As time goes on, you may need less support.
If you change careers, they expect you to be proactive and tell them.
If you qualify for their services, vocational rehab will also help you identify jobs where you likely will be successful, and will help you craft a way to get there.
Yes that’s true what about going back to school? Or it’s not worth it? Why did you think I never finished my degree? Because of my difficulties academically due to my mild intellectual disability?
I never said you didn’t finish your degree. You actually stated that you got a dietary management degree but couldn’t pass the dietary manager test.
That being the case, perhaps you need help finding a career where you enjoy the work and can be successful. This might involve schooling…and it might not. It possibly could be something related to your college degree…or it might not be.
Vocational rehabilitation can help you identify career possibilities and give you guidance on how to reach those goals. If you qualify for their services.
It’s worth a call to request their services.
@aunt_bea do I have that all correct.
Yes true but I got a dietary management certificate not degree just want to make it clear. And what can I do if I can’t pass the class due to my mild intellectual disability? It’s a certificate not degree so I didn’t finish college?
So…this is not accurate? You have a certificate, not a degree.
Regardless…it doesn’t matter. You are now looking for a job/career where you can be successful, right? Maybe a future career won’t need college at all. You need some vocational advice, and vocational rehabilitation might be able to help you.
Consider the suggestion.
Yeah I have a certificate not degree. I have a job but I’m looking for full time in the future.
Your “mild intellectual disability” is not clear. Is this a diagnosis separate from autism, or related? You could consult with Landmark College. Lesley University has a Threshold program. Other schools may also have programs that would accommodate you. I have heard Curry and College of New England mentioned. Many schools have tutors and coaches. If affordable you could also hire one (again consult Landmark for referrals or the International Coaching Federation.)
Community College remains a great resource for training .
Can you afford to volunteer or intern with your certificate?
Whatever you decide to do- work or school or training- I hope you find the support you need and wish you good luck.
What accommodations would help you succeed? Do you have a formal diagnosis from a psychiatrist, doctor or neuropsych. evaluation? Could a provider suggest accommodations and advocate for you?
I understand how you feel. But I am not sure that accommodations are the magic bullet you are envisioning. Still they do level the playing field and it would be worthwhile to discuss with a school you are interested in, using the Office of Disabilities or Office of Student Access or whatever you want to call it.
My mild intellectual disability is different from my autism.
And I have a diagnosis from my psychologist saying I have a mild intellectual disability. I could ask for accommodation like extra time on test and copy of class notes. I also like to have an accommodation of open note test if they allow it. I’ve always had mild intellectual disability as well as my autism and it affects my relationships what do you think?
I am the parent of a 25 year old with well documented learning disabilities and emotional/mental health challenges. He began getting support services through our school district at the age of 3. He completed a year of tech school and then had to quit as all the classes went online during and immediately after the pandemic and he cannot learn with only online classes due to his disabilities. He has lived 3 hours from home since high school graduation. He has been working full time and paying his rent, food, gas, and his “wants/social life” bills. But yes, the FOMO is real. His younger brother will be graduating college and he sees classmates he graduated with in much more advanced careers and personal lives. He has decided to move back home and will be searching for full time employment here while considering taking more classes to make himself more marketable with jobs.
First, you need to get full time employment in a place that potentially gives you tuition reimbursement. You don’t need your parents permission to do that.
Secondly, you need to talk with your medical provider to get testing or documentation that you continue to have disabilities that affect you. Without this, you will be talking about many “what ifs” and speculating which is not useful. You then take these documents and talk to the office of disability services at any school you may want to take courses in.
Last, it is hard to not compare to others but the goal really needs to be financial independence and not wealth. I have a doctorate degree and my father in law who didn’t even graduate high school made much more money than I ever will. I am in my 50’s with 3 degrees (and am a college professor) yet my son’s friends in the trades make a higher salary than I do. I have made my choices in life and have to choose to not dwell on regrets and instead focus on working with what I have, who I am as a person and what my strengths are versus trying to fit into a box that was never meant for me.
Yes I can do that so I need to show my psychological report to my social services at college? What will they do from there?
Your documentation may allow you some accommodations, but they have to be reasonable. You will need to attend open office hours or go to tutoring if you need it to pass. A professor does not have to pass you if you are not showing competency.
I teach nursing. Some of my students get 1.5 times on written exams (so if the exam has a 1 hr time limit, those students get 1.5 hrs). However, in clinical working with real patients, they do NOT get “extra time.” I can actually “deny” accommodations as they are not reasonable. Such as, a patient should not have to endure pain or discomfort for a longer period of time due to the student’s anxiety.
Example, my son may be intrigued by the job of engineering. He may be jealous of his friends who are engineers and the job they do and the money they make. However, he will never be able to be an engineer because of his well documented learning disability in math (dyscalculia). A professor of engineering does not have to “pass” my son in his class regardless of the documentation of a learning disability if my son cannot show competency in his exams and assignments.
You need to find a job that works with your brain. What are you considering?
Is your goal to pass this test and work in that career? Are you looking to change to another area?
As @2plustrio said, you still have to complete the work (or pass the qualification test) if required by the job. You may qualify for extra help or extra time, but if a requirement is that you pass a test, you have to pass it. You may get extra time or they may allow a reader to give the test orally (maybe not), but there is a reason licensing agencies require tests to certify applicants.
I think your first step is to meet with a career counselor who can help you make a plan. Go back to school? Get tutoring to pass the test? Switch careers? Gather all your academic records and your medical records and have an open mind about what you might be able to do and what you cannot do. There are going to be careers you just can’t pass the tests for or aren’t suitable for you with your conditions. We all have to accept that when training for a career. I’m never going to be a ballerina or a neurosurgeon or a farmer, but there are lots of careers I could do and be successful at. I have a friend who is a journalist and has a Pulitzer prize, but she has a condition that doesn’t allow her to do shift work (she has to maintain a consistent sleep schedule) so there were some jobs she couldn’t do (night editor, police beat).
Are you financially able to handle college? Would you be open to going parttime and taking a class or two a semester? You will likely need an updated evaluation if it is many years old and perhaps it can be tailored specifically to identify the specifics of your disability and recommended accommodations. If you have a specific learning disability, for eg, math or auditory processing or executive function deficit, they can be tailored around those. Do you have areas where your skills (scores) are in the average range? Often the diagnosis you mention has referred to overall intellectual scores more than two standard deviations below the norm (one standard deviation would be identified as low average). There are some programs that can assist with degree completion but it may be challenging to try to be a fulltime college student at traditional schools. I agree with the suggestions to pursue a voc rehab evaluation as a start for guidance, direction and support.