What do Grads do AFTER all the accommodations?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They take the jobs best suited to their skills. There are so many jobs that don’t require testing, that have no long-term deadlines, aren’t project based, whatever. You get the accommodations to get through school, then you get a job which doesn’t need any of those kind of accommodations.

So just no positions like doctor or lawyer?

UGH. Sometimes I just want to throw something when I read nonsense like this thread.

My DC's specialist MD is one of few pediatric experts in the country in managing my child's chronic medical condition. The doctor has the same chronic condition and learning differences as my kid and advocates frequently in medicine and in education. It has been life-changing having that doctor's empathy, insight and medical support.

My kid has been admitted into highly competitive schools EA (one with full ride) and is awaiting ivy/ivy-plus results. Not sure of plans yet but I have every confidence that DC's future is very bright. DC fatigues easily and lives with daily pain, but is one of the smartest and most resilient people I have ever known. DC likely will face some struggles in college, but we're doing a lot of planning up front and DC will pivot along the way as needed.

I'm tired of trying to educate ignorant people. Either do some reading or shut up and stay in your own lane, OP.

The ignorance in this thread is mind-boggling. These people have no idea what they don't know -- and utterly lack curiosity to learn. Like autism and ADHD are imaginary and accommodations are a fun little game.

It's like they are against the idea of human beings flourishing, just on principle. Like they prefer a world in which people struggle to survive.

The individuals I am close to with late-diagnosed ADHD and autism -- people in their 50s -- mostly struggled (intermittently) throughout their lives. They underperformed, struggled financially, struggled with addictions to gambling and alcohol and pills. Beautiful, brilliant, creative people who could not understand why they couldn't do what seemed to come easily to others. A kind, lovely, brilliant man who took thirteen years to get his BA and gave up dream after dream along the way. He struggles with depression and I worry about him.

My friend who is an artist and writer and produces phenomenal work but struggles to sell. She has been diagnosed but resists the lanugage of neurodivergence: If you ask her, she's just "broken" and "incapable."

She's survived two suicide attempts.

Idk call me crazy but I would rather people who need support receive support, and that it's better for everyone to live in a world where where fewer people struggle and more people thrive.

My own daughter receives accommodations at college for a disability you won't have heard of and that you cannot see. She has a single room. That's it. Without it she could not be at college. With it, she's at a t20 and is knocking it out of the park.

God save us from the petty, small-minded, and ignorant. Try a little generosity of spirit, and pay attention to doing better and being better and if you don't understand why so many others have accommodations -- try asking, and then listening to the answers.

I feel like this describes me in so many ways. It is too late for me, I'm almost 60. I wanted to be a doctor so badly. I still study medical literature, just for fun. But I just couldn't do college. I excelled in high school. Graduated at the top of my class. Was told I was so so smart. But I just couldn't deal with college for so many reasons. The biggest of which is discovering I have ADHD...after my first child was diagnosed I began seeing the similarities.My whole life I've been told how "smart" I am, yet I KNEW I was stupid and worthless and a failure. Literally hated myself for it. I was one of the "good" girls with ADHD in school. Quiet, shy, did all the work, everyone wanted to sit next to me because they knew I would have the right answers, etc. Yet I just couldn't succeed in college despite a full scholarship. I spend my days still learning, but know that I can't ever achieve the life I wanted because of what wasn't known about ADHD so many years ago. I hope we can all do better to help those that need it and that EVERYONE gets a chance to reach their full potential regardless of what that might be.

[Anonymous]

as someone who's come around only very recently to understanding that her "ADHD" is actually "AuDHD":

One of the sources of confusion and skepticism with all of this is that the language of "disability" and "impairment" used in legal contexts (such as when developing a 504 plan in k12 or via a disability office at college) can be at odds with both the science and sociology of ADHD and autism.

So on one hand, we experience "impairments" in "one or more major life activities" and legally require accommodations -- and on the other hand we are not broken, not worse-than, and not disabled -- just different. Different operating system, works better or worse depending on the need and context -- but we're not impaired any more than a google phone is an impaired iphone. However if you try to sync it to your ipad -- it's just not gonna work. You might need some sort of adaptive mechanism.

Both legally "disabled" and "not disabled, just different" can coexist and be fully valid depending on the context -- but the tension is kind of obvious.

Am I disabled or not? Am I different or impaired? Who decides?

The answer depends on the context and environment, but neurotypicals tend not to like that lol. They just want the answer to be the answer.
Which is really weird to me, but... there ya go.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So there's this cohort we've discussed at length that have had testing, homework, classwork, and so many other accommodations. Clearly we've discussed whether they are legitimate or not, and it sounds like certainly the case for many, but the volume at top universities beggars belief.

Are the accommodated somehow able to hack it in working worlds? Do they up their game? Do they take what look like serious credentials down the working ladder to somewhere less prestigious/rat-race-like? Did they never really need accommodations and were just trying to maximize results, to "play the game" and beat their peers who don't seek extra time, etc.?

I just get curious about the endgame, after graduation.

As the parent of a kid who needs and gets accommodations, I can say that a) parents do worry about how our disabled kids will fare in life; but b) workplaces are required to accommodate.

But you sound like you think we're just making it up. Based on IDK, since you haven't met my kid or others. Let me ask you - why do you think this is any of YOUR business since none of this affects your kid?

https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/40-stanford-undergrads-receive-disability-154137833.html

When 40% of stanford students receive academic accommodations, you can see why people might feel this way.

It is a form of cheating and cheating affects everyone, not just the cheaters.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They take the jobs best suited to their skills. There are so many jobs that don’t require testing, that have no long-term deadlines, aren’t project based, whatever. You get the accommodations to get through school, then you get a job which doesn’t need any of those kind of accommodations.

So just no positions like doctor or lawyer?

UGH. Sometimes I just want to throw something when I read nonsense like this thread.

My DC's specialist MD is one of few pediatric experts in the country in managing my child's chronic medical condition. The doctor has the same chronic condition and learning differences as my kid and advocates frequently in medicine and in education. It has been life-changing having that doctor's empathy, insight and medical support.

My kid has been admitted into highly competitive schools EA (one with full ride) and is awaiting ivy/ivy-plus results. Not sure of plans yet but I have every confidence that DC's future is very bright. DC fatigues easily and lives with daily pain, but is one of the smartest and most resilient people I have ever known. DC likely will face some struggles in college, but we're doing a lot of planning up front and DC will pivot along the way as needed.

I'm tired of trying to educate ignorant people. Either do some reading or shut up and stay in your own lane, OP.

The ignorance in this thread is mind-boggling. These people have no idea what they don't know -- and utterly lack curiosity to learn. Like autism and ADHD are imaginary and accommodations are a fun little game.

It's like they are against the idea of human beings flourishing, just on principle. Like they prefer a world in which people struggle to survive.

The individuals I am close to with late-diagnosed ADHD and autism -- people in their 50s -- mostly struggled (intermittently) throughout their lives. They underperformed, struggled financially, struggled with addictions to gambling and alcohol and pills. Beautiful, brilliant, creative people who could not understand why they couldn't do what seemed to come easily to others. A kind, lovely, brilliant man who took thirteen years to get his BA and gave up dream after dream along the way. He struggles with depression and I worry about him.

My friend who is an artist and writer and produces phenomenal work but struggles to sell. She has been diagnosed but resists the lanugage of neurodivergence: If you ask her, she's just "broken" and "incapable."

She's survived two suicide attempts.

Idk call me crazy but I would rather people who need support receive support, and that it's better for everyone to live in a world where where fewer people struggle and more people thrive.

My own daughter receives accommodations at college for a disability you won't have heard of and that you cannot see. She has a single room. That's it. Without it she could not be at college. With it, she's at a t20 and is knocking it out of the park.

God save us from the petty, small-minded, and ignorant. Try a little generosity of spirit, and pay attention to doing better and being better and if you don't understand why so many others have accommodations -- try asking, and then listening to the answers.

40%? Really?

And when wealthy neighborhoods have 4 or 5 times the frequency of accommodations as poor neighborhoods, you wonder about the equity.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They take the jobs best suited to their skills. There are so many jobs that don’t require testing, that have no long-term deadlines, aren’t project based, whatever. You get the accommodations to get through school, then you get a job which doesn’t need any of those kind of accommodations.

So just no positions like doctor or lawyer?

UGH. Sometimes I just want to throw something when I read nonsense like this thread.

My DC's specialist MD is one of few pediatric experts in the country in managing my child's chronic medical condition. The doctor has the same chronic condition and learning differences as my kid and advocates frequently in medicine and in education. It has been life-changing having that doctor's empathy, insight and medical support.

My kid has been admitted into highly competitive schools EA (one with full ride) and is awaiting ivy/ivy-plus results. Not sure of plans yet but I have every confidence that DC's future is very bright. DC fatigues easily and lives with daily pain, but is one of the smartest and most resilient people I have ever known. DC likely will face some struggles in college, but we're doing a lot of planning up front and DC will pivot along the way as needed.

I'm tired of trying to educate ignorant people. Either do some reading or shut up and stay in your own lane, OP.

To be fair, if there is cheating going on, it is his labne. it's everybody's lane.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So there's this cohort we've discussed at length that have had testing, homework, classwork, and so many other accommodations. Clearly we've discussed whether they are legitimate or not, and it sounds like certainly the case for many, but the volume at top universities beggars belief.

Are the accommodated somehow able to hack it in working worlds? Do they up their game? Do they take what look like serious credentials down the working ladder to somewhere less prestigious/rat-race-like? Did they never really need accommodations and were just trying to maximize results, to "play the game" and beat their peers who don't seek extra time, etc.?

I just get curious about the endgame, after graduation.

As the parent of a kid who needs and gets accommodations, I can say that a) parents do worry about how our disabled kids will fare in life; but b) workplaces are required to accommodate.

But you sound like you think we're just making it up. Based on IDK, since you haven't met my kid or others. Let me ask you - why do you think this is any of YOUR business since none of this affects your kid?

https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/40-stanford-undergrads-receive-disability-154137833.html

When 40% of stanford students receive academic accommodations, you can see why people might feel this way.

It is a form of cheating and cheating affects everyone, not just the cheaters.

Accommodating a disability is not cheating.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They take the jobs best suited to their skills. There are so many jobs that don’t require testing, that have no long-term deadlines, aren’t project based, whatever. You get the accommodations to get through school, then you get a job which doesn’t need any of those kind of accommodations.

So just no positions like doctor or lawyer?

UGH. Sometimes I just want to throw something when I read nonsense like this thread.

My DC's specialist MD is one of few pediatric experts in the country in managing my child's chronic medical condition. The doctor has the same chronic condition and learning differences as my kid and advocates frequently in medicine and in education. It has been life-changing having that doctor's empathy, insight and medical support.

My kid has been admitted into highly competitive schools EA (one with full ride) and is awaiting ivy/ivy-plus results. Not sure of plans yet but I have every confidence that DC's future is very bright. DC fatigues easily and lives with daily pain, but is one of the smartest and most resilient people I have ever known. DC likely will face some struggles in college, but we're doing a lot of planning up front and DC will pivot along the way as needed.

I'm tired of trying to educate ignorant people. Either do some reading or shut up and stay in your own lane, OP.

The ignorance in this thread is mind-boggling. These people have no idea what they don't know -- and utterly lack curiosity to learn. Like autism and ADHD are imaginary and accommodations are a fun little game.

It's like they are against the idea of human beings flourishing, just on principle. Like they prefer a world in which people struggle to survive.

The individuals I am close to with late-diagnosed ADHD and autism -- people in their 50s -- mostly struggled (intermittently) throughout their lives. They underperformed, struggled financially, struggled with addictions to gambling and alcohol and pills. Beautiful, brilliant, creative people who could not understand why they couldn't do what seemed to come easily to others. A kind, lovely, brilliant man who took thirteen years to get his BA and gave up dream after dream along the way. He struggles with depression and I worry about him.

My friend who is an artist and writer and produces phenomenal work but struggles to sell. She has been diagnosed but resists the lanugage of neurodivergence: If you ask her, she's just "broken" and "incapable."

She's survived two suicide attempts.

Idk call me crazy but I would rather people who need support receive support, and that it's better for everyone to live in a world where where fewer people struggle and more people thrive.

My own daughter receives accommodations at college for a disability you won't have heard of and that you cannot see. She has a single room. That's it. Without it she could not be at college. With it, she's at a t20 and is knocking it out of the park.

God save us from the petty, small-minded, and ignorant. Try a little generosity of spirit, and pay attention to doing better and being better and if you don't understand why so many others have accommodations -- try asking, and then listening to the answers.

40%? Really?

And when wealthy neighborhoods have 4 or 5 times the frequency of accommodations as poor neighborhoods, you wonder about the equity.

This country should have universal screening for learning disabilities.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So there's this cohort we've discussed at length that have had testing, homework, classwork, and so many other accommodations. Clearly we've discussed whether they are legitimate or not, and it sounds like certainly the case for many, but the volume at top universities beggars belief.

Are the accommodated somehow able to hack it in working worlds? Do they up their game? Do they take what look like serious credentials down the working ladder to somewhere less prestigious/rat-race-like? Did they never really need accommodations and were just trying to maximize results, to "play the game" and beat their peers who don't seek extra time, etc.?

I just get curious about the endgame, after graduation.

As the parent of a kid who needs and gets accommodations, I can say that a) parents do worry about how our disabled kids will fare in life; but b) workplaces are required to accommodate.

But you sound like you think we're just making it up. Based on IDK, since you haven't met my kid or others. Let me ask you - why do you think this is any of YOUR business since none of this affects your kid?

https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/40-stanford-undergrads-receive-disability-154137833.html

When 40% of stanford students receive academic accommodations, you can see why people might feel this way.

It is a form of cheating and cheating affects everyone, not just the cheaters.

No.

According to Stanford,

"The previously reported numbers (38% for 2023) reflected students who simply registered with the Office of Accessible Education (OAE) during the course of a given year rather than students who received academic accommodations. The number of students who received academic accommodations is less than half of the reported number. For fall 2025, 12.5% of undergraduates received academic accommodations."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So there's this cohort we've discussed at length that have had testing, homework, classwork, and so many other accommodations. Clearly we've discussed whether they are legitimate or not, and it sounds like certainly the case for many, but the volume at top universities beggars belief.

Are the accommodated somehow able to hack it in working worlds? Do they up their game? Do they take what look like serious credentials down the working ladder to somewhere less prestigious/rat-race-like? Did they never really need accommodations and were just trying to maximize results, to "play the game" and beat their peers who don't seek extra time, etc.?

I just get curious about the endgame, after graduation.

As the parent of a kid who needs and gets accommodations, I can say that a) parents do worry about how our disabled kids will fare in life; but b) workplaces are required to accommodate.

But you sound like you think we're just making it up. Based on IDK, since you haven't met my kid or others. Let me ask you - why do you think this is any of YOUR business since none of this affects your kid?

https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/40-stanford-undergrads-receive-disability-154137833.html

When 40% of stanford students receive academic accommodations, you can see why people might feel this way.

It is a form of cheating and cheating affects everyone, not just the cheaters.

I don’t know if it’s cheating but it certainly makes me think of elite schools in a different light. How does one of the best colleges in the country have a 38% disability rate (which I know is not just academic accommodations)? At some point it will be the majority of students. How can the supposedly smartest and most driven kids in the country need special accommodations to succeed? Meanwhile at UMBC, a diverse local school with far lower average test scores, the percentage is 11%.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Agree that the OP seems uninformed and not that bright.

School is mostly a one size fits all situation but the working world is not that way. People with learning disabilities find careers that match their strengths and interests.

+1 My kid has some reading issues, and while they would love to go into law, they know that they cannot because that would require a lot of reading which is their weakness.

So, they are going into something else that doesn't require that much reading.

BTW, I would rather my kid not have this issue and have accommodations. Believe me, it's been a painful and expensive process to get to this point. DC was harming themselves because they couldn't understand why they were having trouble focusing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Agree that the OP seems uninformed and not that bright.

School is mostly a one size fits all situation but the working world is not that way. People with learning disabilities find careers that match their strengths and interests.

+1 My kid has some reading issues, and while they would love to go into law, they know that they cannot because that would require a lot of reading which is their weakness.

So, they are going into something else that doesn't require that much reading.

BTW, I would rather my kid not have this issue and have accommodations. Believe me, it's been a painful and expensive process to get to this point. DC was harming themselves because they couldn't understand why they were having trouble focusing.

But the problem is that kids with weaknesses are insisting on getting accommodations instead of accepting the weakness ….

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So there's this cohort we've discussed at length that have had testing, homework, classwork, and so many other accommodations. Clearly we've discussed whether they are legitimate or not, and it sounds like certainly the case for many, but the volume at top universities beggars belief.

Are the accommodated somehow able to hack it in working worlds? Do they up their game? Do they take what look like serious credentials down the working ladder to somewhere less prestigious/rat-race-like? Did they never really need accommodations and were just trying to maximize results, to "play the game" and beat their peers who don't seek extra time, etc.?

I just get curious about the endgame, after graduation.

As the parent of a kid who needs and gets accommodations, I can say that a) parents do worry about how our disabled kids will fare in life; but b) workplaces are required to accommodate.

But you sound like you think we're just making it up. Based on IDK, since you haven't met my kid or others. Let me ask you - why do you think this is any of YOUR business since none of this affects your kid?

https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/40-stanford-undergrads-receive-disability-154137833.html

When 40% of stanford students receive academic accommodations, you can see why people might feel this way.

It is a form of cheating and cheating affects everyone, not just the cheaters.

First, these disability accommodation percentages include physical disabilities, medical accommodations, allergy accommodations, etc, as well as academic accommodations. Surely you don’t think that a private room for a student with an auto-immune disease or a wheelchair-accessible bathroom are cheating.

Second, purely academic accommodations are still not cheating and are in fact legally required. Colleges have broader leeway for what they will or won’t implement than k-12 educational facilities do, but yes, there are still legal requirements under Section 504 and the ADA that colleges must meet. However, they do not have to make changes that du mentally affect the requirements of a program or degree. So don’t worry, those future doctors and nurses do not get time and half when learning to draw your blood in their phlebotomy class.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Agree that the OP seems uninformed and not that bright.

School is mostly a one size fits all situation but the working world is not that way. People with learning disabilities find careers that match their strengths and interests.

+1 My kid has some reading issues, and while they would love to go into law, they know that they cannot because that would require a lot of reading which is their weakness.

So, they are going into something else that doesn't require that much reading.

BTW, I would rather my kid not have this issue and have accommodations. Believe me, it's been a painful and expensive process to get to this point. DC was harming themselves because they couldn't understand why they were having trouble focusing.

But the problem is that kids with weaknesses are insisting on getting accommodations instead of accepting the weakness ….

The weakness is a medical issue that we have paid thousands of dollars for in diagnosis, therapies, and expensive glasses. Like I said, I'd much rather not have need for these accommodations. It's been really painful. I hope you never have to see your kid harm themselves because they didn't realize that they had a medical condition that caused academic issues. It was scary and broke my heart.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So there's this cohort we've discussed at length that have had testing, homework, classwork, and so many other accommodations. Clearly we've discussed whether they are legitimate or not, and it sounds like certainly the case for many, but the volume at top universities beggars belief.

Are the accommodated somehow able to hack it in working worlds? Do they up their game? Do they take what look like serious credentials down the working ladder to somewhere less prestigious/rat-race-like? Did they never really need accommodations and were just trying to maximize results, to "play the game" and beat their peers who don't seek extra time, etc.?

I just get curious about the endgame, after graduation.

As the parent of a kid who needs and gets accommodations, I can say that a) parents do worry about how our disabled kids will fare in life; but b) workplaces are required to accommodate.

But you sound like you think we're just making it up. Based on IDK, since you haven't met my kid or others. Let me ask you - why do you think this is any of YOUR business since none of this affects your kid?

https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/40-stanford-undergrads-receive-disability-154137833.html

When 40% of stanford students receive academic accommodations, you can see why people might feel this way.

It is a form of cheating and cheating affects everyone, not just the cheaters.

I don’t know if it’s cheating but it certainly makes me think of elite schools in a different light. How does one of the best colleges in the country have a 38% disability rate (which I know is not just academic accommodations)? At some point it will be the majority of students. How can the supposedly smartest and most driven kids in the country need special accommodations to succeed? Meanwhile at UMBC, a diverse local school with far lower average test scores, the percentage is 11%.

I mean, for one thing, UMBC has a lot more commuter students. Try to compare a school with similar on-campus residency rates.

But also, why is this a problem? What is the problem with a student needing a single room or adaptive software or wheelchair access or food that is safe for them to eat?

How about, yay, Stanford is probably doing a really good job of supporting a wide range of students who in the past might have struggled unnecessarily or encountered prohibitively high barriers to entry? Think of all the brilliant students who are being supported. Why is it a problem?

And if it is a problem, why do you assume the problem is with the students and not with the design of our educational institutions? Maybe they should be designed to work better for a widest possible range of bodies, nervous systems, communication styles, modes of vision, hearing, immune response, sensory sensitivity, optimal information processing mode and output capability?

Maybe part of the issue is that we're trying to use a system of education whose core structure has remained substantially unchanged in the past *hundred years* despite massive social, economic, and technological upheavals -- if not revolutions -- in the same time period?

But no. Instead of investing resources in educating each and every student using identified best practices, respecting student strength and agency, and making the system better -- we <gestures wildly at billionaires and corrupt politicians siphoning wealth off of the citizenry and funneling it into dragon lairs worldwide.>

tl;dr There might not be a problem at all -- but if there is one, it's not what you think it is.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Agree that the OP seems uninformed and not that bright.

School is mostly a one size fits all situation but the working world is not that way. People with learning disabilities find careers that match their strengths and interests.

+1 My kid has some reading issues, and while they would love to go into law, they know that they cannot because that would require a lot of reading which is their weakness.

So, they are going into something else that doesn't require that much reading.

BTW, I would rather my kid not have this issue and have accommodations. Believe me, it's been a painful and expensive process to get to this point. DC was harming themselves because they couldn't understand why they were having trouble focusing.

But the problem is that kids with weaknesses are insisting on getting accommodations instead of accepting the weakness ….

actually?

This is the world you want to live in?

Where students with "weaknesses" "accept the weakness" instead of securing whatever supports help them succeed?