Disabled student allowance for autism

[Pumpkindoodles]

Ive just been diagnosed with autism, which is both a relief and big news to take.
I’m currently undergoing further assessment for adhd too.

I’m a mature student and when I told my university they suggested that I might like to look into DSA. Ive seen it can pay for things like equipment, software and travel costs, but it’s quite vague and to be honest I don’t know which of my struggles are down to autism, and what can even be done to help me. I’ve spent 30 years thinking I just needed to find ways around anything I couldn’t do, so I’ve got no idea what help to ask for.
i obviously don’t want to miss out on something that may make uni a bit easier because I really do struggle, and money is tight so if I can get help that’s very much appreciated!
does anyone have any experience with this?

You don't get money.
Well, you can claim back things like printer ink if it is decided printing things makes life easier, but in the main, you don't see any actual money. They recommend equipment that might help you, or it might be assigning a mentor to meet with you once a week to help with organisation. Or for some medical conditions they might fund the difference between a room with a share bathroom and a room with an en-suite. Or maybe a fridge in your room to keep medication in etc etc.

It is all tailored very much to your needs. You have an appointment with someone and they suggest things you will never have thought about and ask if you think that would help.

You complete the form and send away your evidence to Student Finance - if undergrad you just apply online usually through your existing account, if postgrad you need to do the full form and send it to our university to confirm you are a student. If Student Finance accept your evidence then they invite you to meet with a Needs Assessor and at that point they offer you various things that might help you - for ASD usually a mentor and then a laptop with assistive tech (you pay the first £200 of a new laptop or they can pay for any tech they recommend for licenses onto your laptop if you already have a decent one). They can pay for ink and printing, and less often things like taxis if you find public transport to a placement overwhelming. There is an overall financial limit to what each person can get. The process takes at least 14 weeks so its worth applying even if you aren't sure just to get the process started. One thing of concern is that as with all things government funded they will take the cheapest quote - many companies are struggling to recruit mentors now as they can't pay well enough. Often DSA will fund 5 different things from 5 different companies and it is up to you to contact each of them and arrange whatever service DSA have said they will pay for, so it can be a bit of a struggle to get set up for some people. Having said that, if I had got my diagnosis earlier in my course I would have gone for DSA.

Sorry I know i dont get money I just meant if I was buying things already, I may find out those things are actually something I could claim for instead of paying out of pocket.

thats really helpful information though thank you both

yes maybe I’ll start the process and if there’s nothing that would help me, or I decide against it i can, but if it takes that long I may as well start the process, but I’ll be half way through the year I suppose by the time it went through!

I am a bit confused as I had the impression my friends autistic son was given money to buy things for uni!