What did you get with your DSA?

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I got:
- software (TextHelp Read and Write 11 Gold, Mindview 5.0, Microsoft Office, AudioNotetaker [dictaphone software]);
- dictaphone, mic, carry case, earphones, rechargeable batteries;
- all-in-one printer;
- allowance for computer consumables (paper and ink) and photocopying (£150);
- allowance for non-core textbooks (£150);
- allowance for internet (£100);
- extended library loans;
- ergonomic things (gel wrist support and a special mousepad);
- insurance/warranty for the duration of my course (3 years);
- they paid for my needs assessment (£660) and training to use the software (£160/half day, I had 3.5 days training);
- for next year I got my needs assessment updated and they added a specialist mentor (£66/hour - 30 hours for the year).

In addition to the above, my assessor recommended that DSA/SFE should pay the difference for accommodation (just over £1500) as my disability makes it hard for me to be mobile so I need an adapted room which also has an ensuite, but SFE/DSA declined it, so my uni help with that instead (have helped for both first and second year, my disability adviser says they'll probably help next year too).

I also had my individual exam arrangements changed with the help of DSA and my disability adviser. They got me 25% extra writing time, rest breaks, use of a computer, scribe (if needed, depends on the exam and fatigue/pain levels) and for me to sit my exams in an individual room. Recently, my disability adviser suggested that I shouldn't have exams on consecutive days and that was added to my individual exam arrangements.

As well as the above, they recommended that my tutors be informed of my disabilities and any issues that I have due to my disabilities (e.g late hand in or being late to lectures) so I can be given some leniency. Also met with my deparmental disability liason officer (DDLO) which was suggested by my assessor. The DDLO makes sure that I have access to lecture recordings even if they aren't public to the rest of the class as well as given access to lecture slides before.

I have a physical disability (Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, type 3 - HEDS) and some mental health issues (PTSD/depression/anxiety).

(edited 8 years ago)

Reply 21

ali_blue

Original post by claireestelle

yes i m afraid you have to have an ed psych report,at least for your dyslexia, they might accept something else for your adhd though.

Can you get coloured overlays and stuff? Or is that not dsa? Sorry I don't really know what I'm doing haha

Reply 22

claireestelle

Original post by ali_blue

Can you get coloured overlays and stuff? Or is that not dsa? Sorry I don't really know what I'm doing haha

yes you can :smile:

my needs assessor offered me them but they dont work on me:P

Reply 23

ali_blue

Original post by claireestelle

yes you can :smile:

my needs assessor offered me them but they dont work on me:P

Ok thanks! That's annoying. Have you tried all the colours, I found that some of the weirder ones like green and purple wre good

Reply 24

claireestelle

Original post by ali_blue

Ok thanks! That's annoying. Have you tried all the colours, I found that some of the weirder ones like green and purple wre good

i havent tried all of them but i know green and yellow are useless for me

Reply 25

trustmeimlying1

Original post by OU Student

I got:
- note taker (also doubled as someone to take me to tutorials)
- travel allowance for someone to come with me to tutorials
- laptop
- printer
- scanner
- dictaphone
- software - oxford english dictionary, mind mapping, software to change background colour, text to speech software (Jaws, I think)
- extra time in exams

mind saying your disability?

Reply 26

Tiger Rag

Original post by trustmeimlying1

mind saying your disability?

Partial sight / Irlens Syndrome

Reply 27

NJones

Original post by claireestelle

they ll give you one if you ll pay £200 pounds up front or you can buy your own and they might insure it for you.

They do still supply computers where there is a disability related need for one. For SFE 15/16 students you will be required to pay the supplier the first £200 of any computer. You can buy your own but will need to pay additional VAT and the onus is on you to pay to get it insured and warranty extension for the full course. This cost can be reclaimed from SFE, provided it states this in your DSA notification letter (ie. recommended by the assessor). Your computer will then go off to the DSA supplier for software install.

Reply 28

claireestelle

Original post by NJones

Personally I m under nhs dsa and fortunately the nhs dsa agreed I could have a extended warranty bought for my desktop and pay for the supplier to install at my home rather than me sending it off considering I live 30 miles from 2 suppliers it makes more sense :smile:

Reply 29

NJones

Original post by claireestelle

Thats good news. Some don't realise that DSA can be different for England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and NHS England/ Wales etc. On top of changes to DSA regulations each academic year it makes the process of accessing support quite difficult in some cases.

Reply 30

claireestelle

Original post by NJones

There is quite a difference, I was so surprised how efficient the NHS is, took them only something like 2-3 weeks to agree to a needs assessment and i was expecting it to take much longer after sfw took a good month.
Definitely, noticed the changes between the needs assessment report from 2013 and the one i ve just had the way its worded is like they cant not give me the support suggested. Till now i had no idea there were different bands of 1:1 tutor support or the exact job description of the one i had but gave up on (fingers crossed i get someone who understands if you ask someone with structuring issues where a comma should go not to be surprised that i don't know:P)

Reply 31

Dauntless

I'm blind, so I'm pretty sure my equipment and stuff will be different to the OP's.

But, I'm getting a pc, braille display and voice recorder. Then for support 30 hours per year of proofreading, 60 of library support, 100 hours of transcription and 100 of notetaking.

I'll also receive o&m training.

I'm going to take an academic writing class as well if possible because I really need it.

Reply 32

username1342947

I got lots by the sounds of things due to my dyslexia-
I got:
Global autocorrect
mindview
read and write
audio note taker
dragon naturally speaking
a headset with mic
a desk mic
all in one printer (annoying no fund for ink or paper)
a super good dictaphone plus extra batteries and a charger
60 hours worth of study skill session per year
7- 2 hour lessons for the software

is it anyway that I can get some fund all printing and ink?

Reply 33

Tiger Rag

Original post by Jay018

You'd only get ink if you had something like a visual impairment and printed in big print. You won't get funding for paper unless it's coloured.

Reply 34

username1342947

Original post by OU Student

You'd only get ink if you had something like a visual impairment and printed in big print. You won't get funding for paper unless it's coloured.

okay. thanks for the info

Reply 35

NJones

Original post by OU Student

You'd only get ink if you had something like a visual impairment and printed in big print. You won't get funding for paper unless it's coloured.

We do put in general allowance funding for additional printing costs (cartridges) based on the fact that a dyslexic student might print out handouts etc or need to print to proofread, so this is possible, but it's only the additional cost of this and not all the cost. Typically up to £100 per year.

Reply 36

Pathway

Original post by OU Student

You'd only get ink if you had something like a visual impairment and printed in big print. You won't get funding for paper unless it's coloured.

I don't have a visual impairment and I still got funding for printing/ink. :erm:

Reply 37

claireestelle

Original post by Pathway

I don't have a visual impairment and I still got funding for printing/ink. :erm:

they didn't give me one and my handwriting is illegible most of the time:P so i just stick to not printing anything

Reply 38

student2312

For ADHD combined type and dyslexia I got

Non medical helper-
30 hours a year with a specialist dyslexia tutor to help me with things like spelling, proof reading and study techniques. I'll probably use it for study techniques because I have never once studied for an exam so I have no idea where to even start
A few hours training to learn how to use the software I've been given
A human note taker for all my lectures, seminars and tutorials

Equipment
A laptop
A printer/scanner
A handheld spellchecker (my university done my assessment and because they specialize in teaching and all their courses include placements they recommend these for all students with dyslexia to use on placements)
Read and write gold
Mind view
Ms office
Blue overlays

Consumables
Ink/paper allowance
Photocopying allowance

And because my university completed m assessment we were also able to sort out other arrangements that isn't actually DSA such as exam arrangements, flexible hand in dates and extended library loans.

At no point was it mentioned that I would have to pay any money towards the laptop, Does this mean I will be told later or is it possible the cost only applies to England? I'm based in the north of Ireland

(edited 8 years ago)

Reply 39

username1238344

For Aspergers, they gave me:
- 60hrs with a personal tutor
- Extra exam time
- Seperate exam room
- Use of computer
- Extra time for coursework
- Longer time with library books
- Pre-warning of group work

I didn't get much equipment wise, but got quite a bit overall. I thought I'd only get a tutor and a seperate exam room. It's a lot more support than I got from college!