DSA

I’m starting un in September and I applied for DSA after getting diagnosed recently with autism. My ‘needs assessment’ is next week and I’ve been looking at the type of support I can get and I still don’t know what I can ask for really/what I really need? I never really got support in school for my autistic traits because I wasn’t diagnosed so I have no idea what I may need. The only thing I can think of would be a mentor because I had something similar in school but I don’t know much about them/if they’re any good. Does anyone have experience with them?

So, my questions are: what type of support can autistic people get from DSA/ what happens at a needs assessment and will I be scrutinised for not knowing what I need?

Reply 1

Euapp

21

Original post by bananasplit20

I’m starting un in September and I applied for DSA after getting diagnosed recently with autism. My ‘needs assessment’ is next week and I’ve been looking at the type of support I can get and I still don’t know what I can ask for really/what I really need? I never really got support in school for my autistic traits because I wasn’t diagnosed so I have no idea what I may need. The only thing I can think of would be a mentor because I had something similar in school but I don’t know much about them/if they’re any good. Does anyone have experience with them?

So, my questions are: what type of support can autistic people get from DSA/ what happens at a needs assessment and will I be scrutinised for not knowing what I need?

A needs assessment is just a casual chat about your learning methods and what you find complicated. They ask if you already have things in place that help and would also be useful at uni, and then they suggest software etc that may be useful based on what other students with similar « handicaps » have felt useful.
For example my DD is dyslexic and finds that mind mapping is useful for certain subjects. At home we had an A3 printer so that the maps were bigger and clearer for her. DSA helped finance the same printer for her at uni. They also suggested speech to word and word to speech software because she had experienced problems with eye fatigue at certain times of the academic year. They will explain what is available to you, and then you decide if it is appropriate or not.

(edited 9 months ago)

Reply 2

Jess_Lomas

17

So I have mine for autism, depression and anxiety
I'll provide a list of all the software as DSA they are really helpful, also I believe the software for mental health and nuerodiveregent people are the same providing you can explanation for it
I got 2 hours of a therapist
I also got 2 hour ASD mentoring per week which is like study skills and coping with chage etc
Then apart from software they asked about adjustments which you get more of from the uni but there are some like extra time etc that you are supposed to get from DDSS because of the funding (the adjustments you need for exams or presentations etc.)
I was also given a printer for free and £186 for ink and paper but they pack this back rather than giving this to you. (I was eligable for a laptop but didn't need one)
- I got glean which allows you to record the lectures and make notes whilst recording, adding slides, edit them and many more
I was also sent a free microphone with this because of how large the lecture theatres are
- I also got Scholarly which you put in an article and then it summarises it for you and seperates the categories
- I also got global tasks which is an organised to do list online programme but you can hade tasks and edit it in cool other ways so really useful
- I also got pro study which collects all the different articles for different projects and organises them and then does the referencing for you
- I also got writing helper which structures the essay and explains what question words mean as well as telling you if you have any plagarism in it and making sure all the targets are done
- I also got grammarly premium which helps with the tone of the writing which was really helpful (I think this is the only one that isn't on the list for mental health)
- I also got claro read which adds tints to the screen etc and reads out all the text as well as being able to speak to it and it will type for you and it also has other PDF features
- I also got brain in hand which is a app designed for autistic people for routine and having a set bank of solutions when things go wrong but is given for other mental health conditions
Honestly the DSA team are amazing and provide so much support

Original post by bananasplit20

I’m starting un in September and I applied for DSA after getting diagnosed recently with autism. My ‘needs assessment’ is next week and I’ve been looking at the type of support I can get and I still don’t know what I can ask for really/what I really need? I never really got support in school for my autistic traits because I wasn’t diagnosed so I have no idea what I may need. The only thing I can think of would be a mentor because I had something similar in school but I don’t know much about them/if they’re any good. Does anyone have experience with them?

So, my questions are: what type of support can autistic people get from DSA/ what happens at a needs assessment and will I be scrutinised for not knowing what I need?

Hey

It's nothing to worry about. It is just to find out how/what support can be put into place while your studying.
I had no idea when I had my assessment what I needed. They provide ideas on what may be beneficial to you.

So with my assessment here is the support I have in place for my studies-
Laptop- due to me not having a suitable laptop I could use easily
1-1 support (30 hours a year) I study part time so for me this is enough. I am allowed to request more if needed.
Printer ink allowance
Premium Grammerly
Mind map software
A table and cushion for me to use at home due to my condition
Book allowance (not for subject books) its to encourage me to read and develop my learning
read/write software
Training allowance that can go through the software with me.

The assessor will be aware of what may help you best :smile:

Honestly it has been such a big help to me while studying.

Hope this helps!

Sophie
WrexhamUniReps

Reply 4

bruhmomento

11

Original post by WrexhamUniReps

Hey

It's nothing to worry about. It is just to find out how/what support can be put into place while your studying.
I had no idea when I had my assessment what I needed. They provide ideas on what may be beneficial to you.

So with my assessment here is the support I have in place for my studies-
Laptop- due to me not having a suitable laptop I could use easily
1-1 support (30 hours a year) I study part time so for me this is enough. I am allowed to request more if needed.
Printer ink allowance
Premium Grammerly
Mind map software
A table and cushion for me to use at home due to my condition
Book allowance (not for subject books) its to encourage me to read and develop my learning
read/write software
Training allowance that can go through the software with me.

The assessor will be aware of what may help you best :smile:

Honestly it has been such a big help to me while studying.

Hope this helps!

Sophie
WrexhamUniReps

Hi can u explain about the book allowance because I never heard of it :smile:

Reply 5

Euapp

21

Original post by bruhmomento

Hi can u explain about the book allowance because I never heard of it :smile:

You’re sometimes allowed to buy books that are not on the essential reading list ( because if they were they would be counted as an ordinary course expense and not linked to your handicap) and DSA will reimburse you( if this has been mentioned in the DSA provisions letter that you receive) This would normally be books that help understand the course material or things otherwise helpful to help you manage your handicap.
(For key course material you can normally arrange longer loan periods from the library with the help of the uni disability office.)

(edited 8 months ago)

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