Imperial College, geology and son with AS.

[LetsFaceTheMusicAndDance]

DS2 has just had a parents' evening and his A level geology teachers were disappointed that Imperial wasn't on his list of prospective unis. DS1 considered applying but his AS grades weren't up to it and we (and the school) hadn't realised DS2 was capable of such good grades with such (apparently) little effort. The lad surprised and amazed us all.

So he's got a shortlist of Leicester, Cardiff, Southampton, Liverpool and Manchester. He's going to speak to the admissions tutor at Imperial on Monnday and see whether he can visit as the Open Days are finished until June.

He has issues with organisation and time management that the DSA and the unis that he's spoken to seem to be familiar with and supportive of. However, he's worried that Imperial would be more intensive and high pressure than the other unis and hasn't spoken to them about support for his additional needs yet.

It's a gamble really - would it be too much - or would be his chance to really shine? After years of supporting him, nagging him and letting him deal with the consequences of his AS, this might be his big chance.

So does anyone have an idea of whether Imperial is more intensive than other unis and/or how good their support might be?

I have two DC with ASD, and am also a lecturer, and in my experience it is not so much the intensity of courses that is the issue, but the support arrangements and living arrangements that can mean the difference between success or failure.

My advice to you would be to contact all the disability units at each university and ask them what support is on offer, not just in terms of academic but also in social support outside of classes. Try to get past glib promises to concrete examples.

Ask about transition arrangements, for example at my uni we offer the chance for applicants to come in to the campus frequently and to sit in classes so they become familiar. They can also usually keep the same room in halls for the duration of their degree.

Is your DS taking a gap year? I would strongly recommend this, as this allows lots of visits before the degree starts. We have had a couple of cases where AS students who have arrived straight from school have really struggled with the sudden change, and have had struggled to adjust.

Also be aware that Freshers week is often very unstructured and can be very difficult so ask them what plans they have in place to manage this.

Thanks for your advice Creamteas. I have accompanied him to all the Open days (except the one he's at today with his dad as I had a short-notice op this week). I do see what you mean about digging for concrete examples instead of glib promises.

As we are in Wales, I don't want him to take a gap year in case the WG decide they can't fund the grant that brings Welsh Students' fees down to 3.5k per year. Also, he is chomping at the bit. It's quite funny to stand aside when he's at open days and watch him chat to lecturers and they do a bit of a double take when he confidently comes out with this string of stuff I don't understand but they clearly do

He would love the chance to go on transition visits and a few places have said they allow students with ASD to move in a bit early and get their bearings.

With DS1 having just finished his freshers experience, I think DS2 would struggle with the drinking culture and lack of sleep but he's kind of ok with saying no if he doesn't want to do that. It's something we could help him plan around as there's so much available info up front these days.

I know nothing about AS but I did Geology at Imperial (ahem, 15 years ago!!) and given you mention self organisation and time management I would nudge you (and him) to look at what the fieldwork requirements are for all the courses. It was a huge plus point for me as a teenager that the field study excursions started straight off in the first year (compared to Cambridge for example which under that Nat Sci tripos did generic studies for the first year).

Obviously I could be completely out of date, but if geology courses are anything like they were, there is the basic being on time for the coach on a full class trip, and then there is the challenge of doing independent field study between second and third year (get together with a few classmates, decide on a location, arrange accommodation and travel, plan how you're going to cover the area systematically in six weeks, get there safely, deal with unforeseen mishaps or unexpected poor conditions... and then find the time by Christmas to write up your report and do a perfect geological map and cross sections of your area). That project was worth 50% of my third year marks (or maybe 50% of the overall degree, can't remember) and it is away from normal support structures. I am highlighting it because unlike other degrees which go 'classes-study-exams' for three or four years getting a step more difficult each year, the actual balance of taught to independent study changes in geology courses across the three years so it is worth talking that through with admissions and student support people.

Imperial or rather the Royal School Of Mines by the way, was ACE!! I still wear my RSM hoodie with pride.

Thanks Lexi. I think he will be ok with the fieldwork as he's learned a lot through doing his Duke of Edinburgh awards - including how to get on with people he wouldn't choose to mix with. He's also particularly good at seeing things in 3D or so his geology teachers tell me. He won the chool prize at GCSE mainly for his mapping. We're so lucky out local comp has a good set of geology teachers.

It's more the day to day stuff like turning up to lectures, remembering to hand in work and knowing what day it is (not a joke) that I'm concerned about.

Your DS should be entitled to Disabled Students Allowance that can pay for additional help. Make sure it covers a learning mentor.

Learning mentors are there to help with academic organization. The amount of time paid for varies according to a student's need. In some cases, they provided a high level of support. I have known one case where the mentor was with the student from 9-5 every working day. At the other end of the scale, it is meeting up once a week to help plan and keep track of every thing.

In my uni now, every student has a personalized timetable online both for classes and all assessed essays and exams. This has made it a lot easier for all of them, but particularly students with disabilities relating to organization. Whereas where DS1 goes to uni, they still have to check lists on the boards for vital information! This might be something worth asking about!

I don't have any inside info that would help to answer your questions, but I would encourage him to look at Imperial. It's one of the best universities in the world. I know a couple of profs there (one in geology) through work and when I've been there for meetings and met profs, researchers and students I've been very impressed.

How do you think he'd cope with living in London? Would the size of the place, sheer number of people and complexity of getting around prove difficult to cope with?

Creamteas the system your uni runs sounds extremely helpful. I'm going to take your advice and realy get to grips with exactly what kind of support each uni offers and lay them out for comparison. This will help stave off the boredom next week

I was very impresssed with the woman I spoke to about support in Leicester. We hadn't really considered DSA as we don't claim DLA but she knew her stuff and by the end of the time spent talking to her I was sure that he needs to claim and that Leicester's support looks to be very good. He also liked the course and department very much.

A learning mentor would make a huge difference. He would also benefit from being able to record lectures. He has extra time for writing in exams so he's worried about keeping up with note taking in lectures. He'd have no trouble with sticking his hand up and asking for something to be repeated though - or asking questions. He's very confident in lots of ways.

Edam I think it's the best regarded uni for geology. I'm concerned about how he'd cope with living inn London. The thought brings me out in hives tbh but he's a constant surprise to us in that he does things we think would be beyond him and struggles with things we thought he'd find easy.

Letsfacethemusic. Definitely get him to apply for DSA. DD3 is Dyspraxic and has some other learning difficulties. We didn't get DLA for her but she applied for and got DSA. She got all sorts of stuff to helo her with her course which includes 4 hours a month of a study tutor/mentor. Do make sure that you and get in touch with the Disability team at each uni he's interested in. Some were very helpful others useless. She started at Bolton last month which has a very good Disability team.

If you can, visit all the universities and ask for appointments with both the disability team and staff in the dept. Most will be happy to do this, and if not, take them off your list!

If you can also visit not on open days and just wander round and get the feel for the place, and if they are not on site, do the journey to different halls at a busy time, to see how easy or difficult it is.

Has he considered Exeter? Their Camborne School of Mines is world renowned, and the course is taught at their Cornwall Campus in Falmouth (possibly easier to cope with than London?). There's some info here about their DSO offerings at the Cornwall Campus www.exeter.ac.uk/cornwall/support/accessibility/

I'm yet to hear a bad word said about Manchester's DSO (I'm at uni there), but the uni as a whole is very big, though the extent to which he can deal with that is something that you'll have to judge for yourselves.

Do you have backup nearby if he needs emergency support?

RightSaid We were impressed with their student support when we visited but he's not as keen on the course there. Also, the woman we spoke to at Manchester was lovely but again, the course isn't what he's after so it's last on his list above Exeter and Brimingham which are off his list of 5 completely. We did visit when his brother was doing open days last year - we haven't done all these visits recently

Silverapples we don't know anyone in London so no backup. He's voiced concerns today about how he'd cope living there but he's going to look at it carefully as none of us wants him to regret a lost opportunity in future.

Thanks for everyone's input.

Student life in London is a bit different to many other places in the UK. Due to the expense of accomadation near some unis, a lot of students end up living further away than they would at some other unis. This can mean having to manage a commute in London- would this be something your DS could cope with?

If he was able to live in halls for all three years, this probably wouldn't be an issue. However, in London, halls space is a bit more limited than at some other unis, so this may not be possible. I'm not sure about Imperial specifically though.

One thing he could do is join the student room forum and ask students currently on the course/at the uni what it is like to really be a student there. This will probably give him a truer picture than asking at open days. He can then make a bit more of an informed choice about whether he can cope or not.

Living in London is not for everyone, and whilst Imperial is very highly regarded, if he doesn't feel he would be happy there, then he is less likely to do well.

Good ideas thanks Slowloris

I've just done a trawl of the unistats figures for all the likely courses at his preferred unis (I'm bored )

We'll go through them when he gets back from choir (another thing he's done which surprised us!)

I'm a bit about some of the unistats though.