The Benefits of Community College for Learning Disabled Students

by Chad Agrawal

Growing up with a learning disability can turn the world of academia into a long term struggle that is difficult to manage.

Students suffering from disorders such as dyslexia or ADHD have increased difficulties adapting to the college environment, and those with more pronounced disabilities may often feel overwhelmed.

High schools are typically more supportive of students with disabilities--a kind of support that students do not often find in college.

Universities are larger, more impersonal, and more challenging, requiring students to be independent for most of their time.

Going to community college before university offer several benefits over other universities for the learning disabled student.

Even if you're not a learning disabled student, going to community college for 2 years has several benefits that we go over in another post.

Choosing a College for You

When choosing a community college, learning disabled students should keep their eyes open for several things.

Look for schools that offer a support network for students with disabilities, and find out if there are faculty members available for counseling who specialize in helping the disabled.

Some colleges allow learning disabled students to take a lighter course load, which may be beneficial in keeping from becoming overwhelmed.

The ideal college will have tutoring programs available as well, for those times when studying and taking notes just aren't enough.

These things have not been extremely common for many years, but are thankfully becoming more widespread, particularly in community college classes.

Community Colleges Can Help You Succeed

Community colleges are starting up programs that help learning disabled students transition to college and adapt to their new surroundings.

As more and more students seek higher education, the number of students with learning disabilities entering college has naturally increased as well.

Community college administrators have been the most proactive in making the college environment welcoming to disabled students.

Programs like Project Access offer a summer course that teaches disabled students how to transition from high school to college, and to find tutoring and any additional services they may need in college to succeed in spite of their disabilities.

More Resources Made Available To You

The Landmark College in Vermont was created years ago with learning disabled students particularly in mind.

The school was established with the goal of helping students with disabilities obtain the degrees needed to follow their chosen career paths, and they have made leaps and bounds along the way.

Landmark recently began cooperative work with community colleges across the country, offering courses that teach instructors how to most effectively work with learning disabled students.

This is a truly remarkable program that will be a great help to all students and teachers as the faculty members learn to illuminate the strengths of their learning disabled students.

Success in college does not depend solely on the student.

Community College Opportunity

The opportunities available to all students, learning disabled or otherwise, are vast and promising.

CNA schools in Georgia can help the student achieve success in a nursing program.

The aforementioned Landmark school offers comprehensive programs in science and technology.

And now, community colleges in cities across the country are making it possible for students with disabilities to succeed in the college environment.

The transition won't be easy, but the rewards are well worth the labor.

What will be most important is finding the right school.

This post was written by Chad Agrawal

Chad Agrawal is the founder of CCTS, helping students transfer from community college to Ivy League, tier 1 or anywhere else by following this community college guide.

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