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Preparing for College with Learning Differences

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Preparing for College with Learning Differences: Tips for Students and Parents

Transitioning from high school to college is a significant milestone, and for students with learning differences such as ADHD, dyslexia, autism, or executive functioning challenges, the shift can present unique hurdles. However, with thoughtful planning, self-advocacy, and the right support systems in place, students can receive college testing accommodations. These will help you thrive in higher education. Here are practical tips to help you and your student prepare for this exciting new chapter.

  1. Understand the Laws and Your Rights

Unlike high school, where services are provided under IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act), colleges operate under ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. These laws ensure access, not success, so students must actively request accommodations.

Tip for Parents: By ninth grade help your teen understand their diagnosis and how it impacts their learning. Discuss how accommodations help.

  1. Update Evaluations and Documentation

Colleges often require current documentation of a learning difference to grant accommodations. A comprehensive psychoeducational or neuropsychological evaluation within the last 3-5 years is typically needed.

Tip for Students: Work with us to ensure documentation includes specific diagnoses, functional limitations, and recommended accommodations. We test college students and we provide psychoeducational testing for LSAT, GRE, MCAT, and professional boards.

  1. Learn and Practice Self-Advocacy Skills

In college, students are expected to take charge of their own learning needs. This means contacting the disability services office, attending meetings, and communicating with professors about accommodations.

Tip: Practice self-advocacy in high school—ask for help when you need it, schedule your own appointments, and take responsibility for organizing materials.

  1. Explore Campus Support Services

Most colleges have an office of disability services, tutoring centers, and academic coaching. Some even offer specialized programs for students with learning differences, though these may come with an extra cost. Learn about college disability support at Lynn University in Boca Raton, Florida.

Tip: Visit the campus and schedule an in person or Zoom meeting with the disability services office to ask questions about the types of support available. Be prepared to briefly explain how your disability affects you and why you require accommodations.

  1. Practice Independent Living Skills

College life involves more than academics. Students must manage time, organize materials, plan meals, do laundry, and navigate new social situations.

Tip: Start building these skills at home—use a planner or calendar app, learn budgeting basics, and practice routines like doing laundry or managing a daily to-do list. Daily practice will make these lifelong good habits.  This year, read or listen to the book, “Make Your Bed: Little Things That Can Change Your Life… and Maybe the World.“

  1. Choose the Right College Fit

Every college has a different culture, size, level of support, and learning environment. Some students thrive at large universities while others prefer smaller schools with a more personal touch. A smaller Florida college with support is Rollins College.

Tip: When visiting colleges, ask about class sizes, availability of one-on-one support, and how professors accommodate students with learning differences.

    7.  Consider a Summer Bridge Program

Many colleges offer summer transition programs for incoming students with learning differences. These can help ease the transition by teaching academic skills, building confidence, and familiarizing students with the campus.

Tip: Look into bridge programs as early as spring of senior year and apply promptly—they often fill up quickly.

  1. Encourage Emotional Readiness

College can be a rollercoaster of emotions including excitement, anxiety, and sometimes homesickness. Students with learning differences may also deal with lower self-esteem or frustration if academic challenges resurface.

Tip: Promote open conversations about mental health, and consider support from a therapist or counselor to ease the emotional transition.

Final Thoughts

The transition to college with a learning difference is not just about academic preparation. It’s about fostering independence, resilience, and self-awareness. With the right tools and mindset, students will succeed in college and grow into confident, capable adults.

We test high school and college students for college testing accommodations. We also test for GRE accommodations, MCAT accommodations, LSAT accommodations, and technical school accommodation.  The college testing accommodations paperwork is thorough and gives specific recommendations such as 100% extended time, individual testing room, stop the clock brain breaks, and others. Contact us if you need new or updated testing for college or graduate school examinations. We have years and years of experience with this type of testing. Call us at (561) 625 4125

Do Students with Disabilities Attend College?

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The high school to college transition is a huge step in a teen’s life and independent living. With hard work students with learning disabilities, mild autism, ADHD, and other disabilities attend and graduate from college.

College Planning

In addition to your student’s hard work, college planning is an important factor to set your student up for success.  Expert college planners such as those at Class101.com help all high school students, including those with disabilities, identify the right college. They specialize in supporting families through the entire process from identifying colleges for their unique needs, applying, essay writing, and ensuring that accommodations are available.  Class 101 college planners even guide families on available scholarships for making college more affordable.

College Executive Functioning Support

While many college students live on campus, some live in off campus housing with support. The organization called College Living Experience.com provides off campus housing along with coaching or mentoring to students with disabilities.  They help facilitate the transition to college by providing tutoring, executive functioning skills coaching, and socialization for students.

Developmental Disabilities and College

Students with developmental disabilities or Intellectual Disabilities also attend college.  Florida Atlantic University offers the Academy for Community Inclusion on the Jupiter and Boca Raton campuses. This program allows students to participate in college activities, clubs, and organizations as they take college courses to earn certificates. Students receive a college experience while gaining skills for independence and employment.

College Alternatives

Of course, college is not the right fit for everyone and there are plenty of well-paying jobs that don’t require a degree. Mike Rowe is a television personality and host of Dirty Jobs. He is a huge advocate of the trades and has resources on his website or podcast.

We know students with disabilities who are successful in college and life because of caring parents, family, and mentors. Reach out if we can help you as we test students from preschool through graduate school. If you need updated testing or are concerned about a potential learning disability, autism, or ADHD, call (561) 625 4125.

College Learning Disability ADHD Testing in Florida

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Your child may have had accommodations in high school and many of those same accommodations are available in college.  Most universities require updated testing for college learning disability ADHD accommodations which means testing within the last three years.  The most common college accommodations are extended time on tests, distraction reduced testing, small group or individual testing, copies of notes, and preferential seating.  Other college accommodations include using technology such as a tablet or computer to take notes during class.

Less frequent accommodations include having a course substituted or waived, a single dorm room without a roommate, and extended time to complete your degree. Each school’s office for students with disabilities can give you the specific accommodations they provide.  If you had a 504 Plan or IEP in high school it can be helpful to bring that with you to show the types of accommodations you previously received. Colleges do not honor your previous IEP or 504 Plan nor do they write an IEP or 504 Plan but they provide accommodations as part of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

We do college learning disability ADHD testing for high school and college students so that your paperwork is updated and ready to submit for accommodations.  Testing can be done in one day and your written report with results and specific college recommendations is ready in less than a week.

Florida Universities with College Learning Disability ADHD Accommodations

Below are some of the links to Florida universities so you can obtain additional information directly from the university.

University of Florida Disability Testing

The University of Florida offers accommodations through their Disability Resource Center. According to their website, if you think you need accommodations call the office to set up an intake appointment with one of the learning specialists. https://disability.ufl.edu

Florida State University Disability Testing

Florida State University has a Student Disability Resource Center and according to their website 2100 FSU students receive accommodations. They provide, “academic accommodations, testing support, assistive technologies, and a space for students to feel part of the FSU community.”  Learn more at https://dos.fsu.edu/sdrc/.

University of Central Florida Disability Testing

The University of Central Florida calls their office Student Accessibility Services.  They recommend students set up an appointment to meet with an advisor. Learn more at https://sas.sdes.ucf.edu.

University of South Florida Disability Testing

The University of South Florida has a Students with Disabilities Services office. Once admitted, students can apply for services. According to their website, “Students are responsible for identifying themselves to SDS and present proper medical documentation to receive academic accommodations.” Learn more at https://www.usf.edu/student-affairs/student-disabilities-services/

Florida Gulf Coast University Disability Testing

Florida Gulf Coast University has an Office of Adaptive Services to provide college learning disability ADHD accommodations. Their goal is “To enhance access for students, faculty, staff and guests with disabilities by providing effective reasonable accommodations through educating the campus community and promoting equal access and opportunity”. https://www2.fgcu.edu/Adaptive/.

University of North Florida Disability Testing

The University of North Florida is in Jacksonville, Florida and offers accommodations to students through their Disability Resource Center.  Bring your paperwork into their office and register for accommodations.  You can learn more at http://www.unf.edu/drc/.

University of West Florida Disability Testing

The University of West Florida has a Student Accessibility Resources office. According to their website they “Offer a variety of accommodations and services for students with documented disabilities including learning disabilities, deaf/hard of hearing, blind/low vision, mobility limitations, ADHD, psychiatric and medical conditions.” Find additional information at:  https://uwf.edu/offices/emerald-coast/student-services-resources/student-accessibility-resources/

Palm Beach Atlantic University Disability Testing

Palm Beach Atlantic University has “Disability Services Office.” They offer a guide book and application on their website. https://www.pba.edu/disability-services

Atlantic University Disability Testing

Florida Atlantic University offers Student Accessibility Resources offers resources “Include advocacy, academic accommodations, Assistive Technology equipment/software training, Assistive Technology Computer Lab, Learning Strategies training, and an active student organization.”  They offer services across all campuses. Learn more at http://www.fau.edu/sas/

We can still do college learning disability ADHD testing for other universities even if your university was not listed above.  Call our office (561) 625-4125

Palm Beach Atlantic University Disability Testing

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The Palm Beach Atlantic University disability testing provides students with up to date documentation they can submit to request reasonable accommodations.  Palm Beach Atlantic calls their office Disability Services and it is located in the Student Success Center.  As a licensed school psychologist, I provide testing for college students and the testing takes approximately 4 to 4.5 hours.  Most college students prefer to complete the testing in one day while some prefer testing on two different days.

What Does Palm Beach Atlantic Disability Testing Include?

The Palm Beach Atlantic University disability testing includes any needed testing in the areas of intelligence (IQ testing), academic testing in reading, writing, and math, tests of information or neuropsychological processing, executive functioning, continuous performance tests, behavioral rating scales, and additional areas as needed.  Each person’s disability is unique so a customized battery of tests are used for each college student.

According to the PBA Disability Services website, their guidelines recommend the student submit the following.  “The following evaluative criteria must be met:

  • Testing that is comprehensive, including a measure of both aptitude and academic achievement in the areas of reading, mathematics, and written language.
  • Documentation for eligibility reflecting the current impact the learning disability has on the student’s functioning.
  • A clear statement that a learning disability is present along with the rational for this diagnosis
  • A narrative summary, including all scores (standard and percentile) supporting the diagnosis.
  • A statement of strengths and needs that will impact the student’s ability to meet the demands of the university environment
  • A statement of the functional impact or limitations of the disability on learning or other major life activities and the degree to which it impacts the individual in the learning context for which accommodations are being requested.
  • Further assessment by an appropriate professional may be required if co-existing learning disabilities or other disabling conditions are indicated.”

What Does Palm Beach Atlantic Do with Disability Testing?

Once a student submits their disability documentation paperwork, they must also complete an application for services.  These two documents are reviewed by a counselor and the counselor meets with the student.  They set up an action plan and the student receives an official approval letter which they can provide each professor.  Some accommodations granted by Palm Beach Atlantic’s Disability Services Office include:

Support Services (granted by Student Success Center based on documentation of disability):

  • Extended time on tests [up to time and one half (i.e 1hr class =1.5 hr test time)]
  • Separate location for testing
  • Faculty/Staff notification of student’s disability(with student’s written permission)
  • A copy of the lecture notes when possible
  • Tape Recording of class lecture

When choosing a psychologist to complete the student’s disability testing paperwork, it’s important to work with a professional familiar with Palm Beach Atlantic’s requirements.  Use the contact form above or call if you’d like to discuss college disability testing.