should i go to university

Im profoundly deaf with not good standard of speech, I don't really know if i can go to university. I wear hearing aids and i can hear everything. But im scared whether people may not be able to understand me. I might go to uni at 2024 sept as atm im doing 3 alevel. Im just worried that i may not fit in or make any friends. Im worried about what people are gunna think about me. I'm just unsure whether i want to go to uni.

Hi @jporter896,
I’m a first-year student at BCU and from my time at university so far, I have met so many people from different walks of life, all with differing abilities and backgrounds – myself included- and I would say that you shouldn’t let anything hold you back from considering university.

At university there are lots of opportunities to make new friends, and to keep making friends throughout your studies too. Societies are a great way to meet people of similar interests and if you all have a common interest, it’s hard to not make friends! Here at BCU we have a Sign Language Society, open to all students. I don’t want to assume that sign language is something you use or are interested in, but just as an example of how students are willing to learn something new, and you won’t be alone if you decide to go to uni.

If there are some unis that you do like the look of, I wouldn’t hesitate to get in contact with them to ask about student support available to you. I know myself from receiving help for my own medical condition, that universities can be very supportive and there is no hardship in asking for their support.
If you’re unsure about university in general, I would spend some time over the summer looking at the UCAS website and seeing what options appeal to you. I was unsure of uni at first, so I studied a Foundation Year at my local college before moving away. But there are apprenticeships and degree level courses at colleges too that you may like the look of.

I hope this helps and good luck with your A Levels,
Emily
Student Ambassador at Birmingham City University

Im profoundly deaf with not good standard of speech, I don't really know if i can go to university. I wear hearing aids and i can hear everything. But im scared whether people may not be able to understand me. I might go to uni at 2024 sept as atm im doing 3 alevel. Im just worried that i may not fit in or make any friends. Im worried about what people are gunna think about me. I'm just unsure whether i want to go to uni.

Yeah it helps. I'll have a look at the Sign Language society. Would you get supports like notetakers or sign language interpreter for free at University.

Hey!

I can understand that thinking about whether or not to go to university can be an anxious decision to make, but I can assure you that here at Swansea University we would welcome you with open arms. Swansea has really good disability support, ensuring that all reasonable adjustments are made to allow your student life to be as easy as possible. For example, one of our medical students has cochlear implants and can find large group situations and lectures quite overwhelming, but the Medical School and Disability Team have provided the lecturer with a microphone to wear that is synchronised with her implants to allow her to hear them. Swansea have also been recording many lectures lately, off the back of Covid, with closed captioning functions able to be used on recordings/zoom to help facilitate your learning. Swansea is such a friendly place, and you would fit right in in our diverse community of students. If there were any adjustments that you felt you needed specifically, these would be things that you could talk to the Disability Team about, to see if they could put it in place for you.

In terms of worrying about fitting in and making friends, I think this is a very common emotion felt by all students who go to university, often with many leaving home for the first time. We have written some forum posts on 'Making Friends and Finding New Experiences' and 'Leaving Home for the First Time' which you should definitely check out. These talk about things like joining societies, making the most of Swansea as a city and all of the wellbeing support services that Swansea has to offer, amongst other things.

Finally, just be yourself and I am sure people will love you.

Let us know if you have any more questions.

Hope Henry - Swansea Student Ambassador - Second Year Graduate Entry Medicine.

Hi @jporter896,
Apologies for not getting back to you sooner.

One of my friends is partially deaf and they have a notetaker in their lectures who was appointed by BCU, so they are available. Below is a link to the support webpage which gives you some more information about the help you can apply for, and how to get in touch. It also mentions about applying for Disabled Student’s Allowance, which you can apply for to get possible extra support while studying at uni.

Here’s the link: https://www.bcu.ac.uk/student-info/student-support/disability-support/planning-support

Hope this helps answer your question,
Emily
Student Ambassador at Birmingham City University

No need to apologies about getting back to me. Thank you for the information, this is great that the university provide notetaking but i have one last question, do your friend who is partially deaf need to pay for the notetaker?