Dyslexia support before Uni.

[Clare472]

My nephew is dyslexic and has struggled to get through school. he has however a very high IQ and is hoping to study sciences at university - subjects he excels in. His Mum is anxious about him being able to cope he is typically poor at plannng, time management, organisation and she has provided him with loads of support until now. Does anyone know of any support available before university for these things (tutoring style perhaps) we know he will get study support at uni but how about these 'life skills'?

'Life skills" are generally the responsibility of parents, I should have thought? There's limited university support for life skills, IME. I'd be asking my GP's practice as a starting point perhaps, for support for the parents to help teach life skills.

I don't know about before university, but if he's going up next autumn, he could email the university disability office now and see if they can help. They vary in how busy and how good they are IME, but some universities actually contact dyslexic and other disabled students over the summer anyway, to help them prepare. It depends what exactly you mean by 'life skills' though - they'll help with things that aren't exactly academic, but there'll be a limit.

Is it things like helping him plan how long it takes him to get from his room to lectures or how to read a bus timetable, that sort of thing? Or is it more that he knows the theory but goes to pieces when he's faced with actually doing it?

Thanks both, its to do with studying and managing the study process which Im sure the Uni would help with but also getting too and from lectures on time, keeping his keys and wallet secure, keeping his kitchen stocked that sort of thing. I appreciate that Uni student support will help but didnt know they provided support over the summer too. Thats great news. I dont think the GP route will work as he doesnt have a medical issue it is what his family have been supporting him with, as with all students. but for him with whistles and bells on! I also think that it is self belief and confidence thing which is harder to manage from a distance so maybe he needs some life coaching style of support from someone with learning disability experience.

Well, they might or they might not provide support, but it's worth asking. And at least where I am, student support and the disability office aren't the same thing.

The University should do an assessment and provide appropriate support in conjunction with other services where necessary BUT their ability and willingness to do so varies enormously! I once had two students start an MA with, coincidentally, the same needs. One was also a lecturer at another Uni and arranged his support through them - they provided a suitably adjusted computer, software and a trained assistant to help with his assignments. The other relied on my Uni, which cancelled her original assessment interview twice (without even telling her - when she turned up having taken a day off work and driven up she was told she was a student so it was assumed she would be available anytime!!!), and by the time she was assessed it was near the end of the one year course.

I would strongly advise he finds out about specific support at the Uni he is going at and if he hasn't chosen a Uni yet to modify his choices accordingly. He shouldn't rely on the Uni's own publicity, he should speak to the Disability Liaison Student at the Students' Union for a more accurate account of the reality of the situation.

Has he applied for disabled students allowance?

Thanks so much that is a great help.

Unfortunately the government are proposing big cuts to the funding for disabled students .

The outcome of these proposals is not fully known, so depending on when he is due to start, he might not get as much as current students.

LRDthefeministdragon: I will pass this on thanks for the clarification.
creamteas: thanks for the link. Why am I not surprised by this and yet such a significant minority of students have disabilities of one sort or another.
mumeeee:I have suggested this to his Mum but not sure he will want to be so 'public' about his disability. Im not sure its a sensitive area and he struggled to find out he was 'different' at the time he was diagnosed. Teenagers hate to be singled out dont they.
Booboostoo: loads of useful info, thanks. I will pass this on.
I wonder whether there are private tutors similar to private subject tutors which provide this type of support and how much it might cost?

If it helps, tell him that in my university, students can request that their note-takers do not sit with them in class. So if you have invisible disabilities, other students will not know unless you tell them.

clare472 He doesn't have to go public applying for DSA. Applying for it may get him more help at uni. DD3 is Dyspraxic and has other learning difficulties, She has just finished her first year at uni. She applied for and got DSA. She got a laptop and printer,an electricNic note recorder.proof reader. Study support tutor plus a computer and extra time for exams. The study support tutor also helped with some organisational skills. Pm me if you want more details.

DD3 wasn't sure about having a note taker. Her DSA assessor offered her an electronic recorder instead which she was very pleased about. Only some people knew about her disabilities. One of her fellow students is Dyslexic and she didn't know untill he joined her in the seperate exam room and was using head phones to have the questions read to him

Clare472 I've had a few postgrad research students who made a bit of extra money by working as support tutors for students with disabilities, but they were contracted through disability services. They would do things like take notes, or type them up on the computer, or read out notes, or go to the library and take out books, etc. it really dependent on the needs of the student they were helping. Perhaps if you ask at disability services they should be able to give you a list of students who have done this in the past who might be willing to be hired privately. I have no idea about salary but I expect it would be close to minimum wage.

YY, DSA is great and no-one needs know (except his tutors, and I suppose not even them if he'd rather not). He does need an in-date assessment though, but it sounds as if this all happened not long ago?

I bang on about this, but do urge him to get DSA sorted out asap. It's rotten getting to summer exams and realizing you can't access enough support because the turn-around time is longer than you realized.

He shouldn't feel too singled out. I have four dyslexics (or three and a dyspraxic? I forget) in a class of 24 this year, so it's not odd.

Brilliant help everyone thanks very much!

I bang on about this, but do urge him to get DSA sorted out asap

I agree on this, but would go further and say it is often better for disabled students to take a gap year, so everything is lined up when they start.

(Although clearly if this means they will lose support due to DSA changes, it might not be a good idea!)