Language waiver in college

[Anonymous]

I’m not sure if this should be posted here or on the college forum. DS is a senior and has made his college decision. He has a history of childhood apraxia though nobody would know it to hear him speak. He had many years of intensive high quality therapy. The issue is that he will struggle with a foreign language and his college requires it. Has anybody had success getting a foreign language requirement waived? I’m referring to taking the credit in college not having taken it in HS for admission. In MS and HS the IEP team discouraged a foreign language and he was able to take ASL. The college doesn’t offer ASL which would be a really great option. Finding someone to corroborate his diagnosis as a YA is a challenge since his speech sounds normal, though I have stacks of documentation from his younger days. This is a very small LAC that’s known to be supportive so I’m hoping I’m worrying for nothing but I’d love any wisdom or advice.

[Anonymous]

Reach out to their disability office to ask them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Reach out to their disability office to ask them.

DS is setting up an appointment but we want to make sure he feels prepared. The general guidance is to provide documentation which is what we are having trouble figuring out how to do. I was really wondering if others had been in this particular situation with no recent testing and still had success. I have 2 older kids with disabilities and I was able to provide testing to support their diagnoses and accommodations. This situation is just more unusual.

[Anonymous]

This won’t help you, OP, and I really hope you get the waiver, but for my kid we purposely researched programs that did not require FL. He’s a senior now and headed off in the fall.

I didn’t have a disability but struggled myself with FL back in HS and did the same back when I went to college. There was no way I ever wanted to take another language again when I didn’t need to.

For others, I’d avoid if you can’t guarantee you are getting the waiver before applying.

[Anonymous]

My dyslexic son only applied to schools with no language requirement. HS language was bad enough.

[Anonymous]

My son had a waiver in HS. Our small state college told us during admissions they would not waive their FL graduation requirement no matter what. Disability services help with accessing learning, but cannot waive graduation requirements. They would accept semesters of any language or ASL taken elsewhere if pre-approved, and offered tutoring, technology, etc.

Some college programs do not require FL. I wish it was easier to research this when applying.

[Anonymous]

My dyslexic son was waived out of foreign language in high school, but his college requires it. So he is going to take the minimum requirement in the easiest language/professor combo available.

I think at this point, having done all the things they need to do to persevere and get to college, passing Spanish 1 isn’t going to be the hardest thing. My son may get a C. That’s okay. And perhaps he’ll find he needs to take Spanish 1 again to pass. That’s okay too. I had to do that with calculus in college.

Have faith in your kid that he’ll figure it out. He doesn’t need to fulfill his FL requirement his first or even second year. He may not have to do it at his college, even - he may be able to do it over the summer while he focuses on nothing else.

So sure, try for the exemption. But if he doesn’t get it he’ll find a way to meet the requirement. He’s got this.

[Anonymous]

Does he have a psychiatrist or psychologist who can write a letter? My son’s offered if I recall correctly when he was struggling with FL. We didn’t use it but she seemed confident the school would accept it.

[Anonymous]

And also FL waivers are very common so I would be surprised if it’s an issue. In retrospect we should have gotten one, because the language courses were rough.

[Anonymous]

Sometimes, doing a college sponsored program in another country for the summer or spring or fall can be a way to get the required language. A total immersion experience might help.

Also, see if you can transfer a credit from another school- like take it at a cc in the summer. Most colleges just transfer the credit and not the grade.

However, like the others have said, contact the disability center, make an appointment and talk with them. I have found most will be cagey about granting a specific accommodation before anything formal is done, but I found when DC used the words, “for a student like me with x,y,z ….. are these (list) accommodations generally granted……. Is a language waiver generally granted…… is there a cultural class available that is substituted for the foreign language? Can the foreign language requirement be done at another school and transferred in?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My dyslexic son was waived out of foreign language in high school, but his college requires it. So he is going to take the minimum requirement in the easiest language/professor combo available.

I think at this point, having done all the things they need to do to persevere and get to college, passing Spanish 1 isn’t going to be the hardest thing. My son may get a C. That’s okay. And perhaps he’ll find he needs to take Spanish 1 again to pass. That’s okay too. I had to do that with calculus in college.

Have faith in your kid that he’ll figure it out. He doesn’t need to fulfill his FL requirement his first or even second year. He may not have to do it at his college, even - he may be able to do it over the summer while he focuses on nothing else.

So sure, try for the exemption. But if he doesn’t get it he’ll find a way to meet the requirement. He’s got this.

I wish you the best but at my son’s school the requirement is through intermediate level, or three semesters, and he ended up getting Ds in the later semesters and it tanked his confidence (and GPA). I wish we had made him use the waiver.

[Anonymous]

What state are you in? Virginia public colleges are required by law to accept ASL for foreign language credit, even if they don't offer it, meaning you could take the classes over the summer at a community college and transfer the credits in. Not sure if other states have the same laws, but it might be worth looking into.

[Anonymous]

You are going to need to be at a school that has a policy of offering a language waiver, as well as updated testing. I am baffled why this wasn't a priority in your college search.

For a kid with apraxia of speech, Latin is a common choice as there is no spoken component.

[Anonymous]

Can he take something like Latin that doesn't involve speaking? Or see if he can take ASL at a community college in the summer?

Colleges aren't required to modify graduation requirements, but some do, so all you can do is ask. You may need a medical provider to explain why he *now* can't take a language, despite his improvement in speaking.

[Anonymous]

Gallaudet has good online classes.