students

[NobbyNobbs]

i'm trying to guage other AS peoples time at university. i really struggle with living away from home and also cannot do the written assignments or take notes in class because i dont know what i'm meant to write. i'm getting help for this now (supposedly) but i wanted to know if anyone else found university really difficult to cope with. academically i find the work easy - in that i can understand it and learn it, but i can't do the writing so i tend towards underachieving massively.

 

i'm in my 4th year, and spent 6 months in an american university. i got full marks for everything and had a fantastic time because its very structured - a bit like going back to primary school! this has made the british system seem so much worse because now i know i CAN do it. its the style of education thats wrong.

[Kinda]

Hi Nobbynobbs

 

My son struggled with university, not so much the work but the note taking and having to write and having to live away from home.

 

As he had a statement in place the university had to have the notes available in written form but if this didn't happen then he struggled. He liked the subjects that were very structured too.

 

I questioned the lack of actual teaching on my course I did with the OU. It was not uncommon for me to not understand the course until we had residentials and went away for a week of tutorials when the course became clear when explained by the lecturers. When I asked why there wasn't more "teaching" contained in the course because it would then be easier to understand the explanation given was that the higher up the academic ladder you go the less "teaching" there is.

 

This answer for me does not explain why that is just that it is that way.

 

May I suggest you try and engage with the University to meet your specific needs. Do you have a DX in place, it would the vehicle to engage with the University. Try and hang in there and negotiate with them as to your accomodation and delivery of the course assistance you need.

 

Kinda

[Mumble]

i know i CAN do it. its the style of education thats wrong.

*Nods Churchill dog style, very vigorously* I'm at PhD level, and the assessment and particular course requirements are, literally, killing me I hate so much that I can do the work but am not allowed to show what I can do and this is now being used against me as 'proof' I can't do what I want to do

[NobbyNobbs]

May I suggest you try and engage with the University to meet your specific needs. Do you have a DX in place, it would the vehicle to engage with the University. Try and hang in there and negotiate with them as to your accomodation and delivery of the course assistance you need.

 

Kinda

 

i have enough of a diagnosis for the university, and they are sort of helping... i'm meant to be graduating on monday but since my diagnosis ive asked to have my coursework for this term delayed until next year, and one of my exams also delayed because i have no notes for the subject. theyre being pretty helpful now they know they have to be however to get the funding for all the support and software i have to be studying at the university, so it looks like i'm going to be spending more time away from home, which is just not good. ive got a dx of AS and dyslexia, so the educational psychologist said that i needed tutor hours as well as software to teach me how to work round the problems i have with writing.

 

i hate that i only have 6 hours of class a week. i spend the rest of the week having nothing to do so i get into bad habits!

 

*Nods Churchill dog style, very vigorously* I'm at PhD level, and the assessment and particular course requirements are, literally, killing me I hate so much that I can do the work but am not allowed to show what I can do and this is now being used against me as 'proof' I can't do what I want to do

i know! its just insane that we're generally very clever people, but because we dont work like others we get told we can't do things. although i have to say when i had my ed. psych assessment she suddenly started talking about postgraduate work and how i could do whatever i wanted and at that point i wasn't even going to graduate ever! it was quite nice to meet someone who was enthusiastic about me doing something rather than not doing it.

[Imposter]

I failed miserably....

 

I wasn't diagnosed at the time....

 

But hated the move...

 

I went to University at the age of 18 (and with a July birthday only just 18) at a large northern city about 40 miles away from the large northern town I've lived in for the rest of my life.

 

I struggled completely with the change.

 

Although I did A-Level's - I did them at my school 6th form - and what with the timetables etc... it was still like being at a school rather than a 6th form college.

 

I struggled with organising the day and timetables - not helped by lectures and classes being left, right and centre all over the show. I had one memorable set of lectures that went like this: Lecture 1 finishes at 11am on X-Day. Lecture 2 due to start at 11am on X-Day in Lecture Hall - 15 minutes walk away!!! Argh!!!

 

I also struggled with the social side of things.

 

I didn't really have great friends at school and through 6th form. Not that I'm having a go at them. My school was based in central Manchester and had people coming from all-over the Greater Manchester/Cheshire/Lancashire area - so like a lot of people - you tended to hang around with people at school and not outside - because with 1 friend from Knutsford, 2 from Oldham, 1 from Salford, 1 more from Bolton, 2 from Stockport, 1 from Manchester etc... getting together from such a wide area for teenagers was hardish - especially then (10-15 years ago) when mobiles phones, internet, MSN, Myspace, Facebook etc.. were either non-existent or nowhere near as prevalent especially in the young.

 

Consequently I didn't do the - going out, clubbing, drinking, seeing bands etc.. things that a lot of teenagers do at 16-18 at the time of college/A-Levels.

 

As a result I struggled greatly with the whole social life side of things as well.

 

I do feel it possibly wasn't the fault of the university or staff.

 

I put the blame more at people earlier on in my life schools/educational psychologists who failed to properly diagnose or treat the system.

 

From early age:

 

I was born deaf... and had an operation to correct this a 2 years old. Indeed reading the "Supermarkets" thread on the general discussion board is quite interesting because apparently at around this age as a young toddler I used to "throw strops" (as they would be described) but reading people call them "meltdowns" makes me think if that was me. At the time it was put down to my deafness/hard of hearing/communication problems.

 

Partially as a result of this (but also due to the AS) I was understandably a little slow developmentally, particularly socially and in terms of speech/communication. This is going back about 25 years now and was simply passed off at the time as a result of my deafness - and other illnesses I'd had as a youngster (I was also a failure to thrive baby and had things like whooping cough, collapsed lung, pneumonia etc.. as a little baby/toddler).

 

I started nursery late and was kept behind a year at nursery and subsequently started school a year late. In my first year at school I got diagnosed with what was then called "Clumsy Child Syndrome" - again a lot of the symptoms would fit those of AS. My lack of social development was put down to me being a quiet, just slightly eccentric child. It wasn't helped possibly by the fact that I came from a reasonably large family of 2 older brothers and 1 younger (all within 4.5 years of me) and lived on a residential suburban street with a number of similar families so with regards friends/playing etc... I tended to just go with the flow and hang around with my brothers. If I'd had no siblings or none around my age I probably would have socialised a lot less and it may have been picked up earlier.

 

Despite this I did get special help (albeit not 1-1) from a qualified special assistant.

 

Coming towards the end of my time in Primary school I was bumped up a year for no particular reason. Whilst I coped with this with relative ease academically, socially and developmentally I probably wasn't ready.

 

Going to secondary school, it was a private school that I managed to get to on a scholarship. But they were relatively useless.

 

After many more Ed Psych visits and tests following the initial I was diagnosed aged 12 with Dyspraxia and mild Dysgraphia - but still no-one put two and two together and thought about the AS

 

Following this it was recommended I be allowed use of PC/Word Processor - after some discussions/battles with the school they eventually paid for a rather rubbish laptop word processor - and that's ALL it did - Word Processing. Rubbish for Maths or Science or Geography, with graphs and diagrams and tables etc...

 

As a result of the Dyspraxia and my dislike of having to draw things like diagrams etc.. I eventually dropped all scientific or mathematical or technical or visual artistic subjects at school/university - concentrating on bookish subjects like history, politics, English Lit and Lang, Sociology, Philosophy, Theology etc..

 

On arrival at University I was assessed again and got given a super-duper brand new computer and stuff worth about 3 grand.

 

But they still didn't look into the whole overall picture and pick up the diagnosis.

 

It is one of the times in my life when I would most wanted to have been diagnosed before I'd made those steps and done the course.

 

I eventually managed to finish a degree at Manchester Met university...... but I still think because of a lack of diagnosis I haven't always had the help/support I wanted/needed/deserved.

 

I have to say to anyone who wonders whether getting an early diagnosis is important - get it as early as you can - therefore you can get the help/support/understanding you need earlier rather than later which can open up so many more options and make life so much easier.

 

If I'd had it at school I may not have shut out the likes of the sciences and technology so readily. And certainly if I'd had it at university I certainly would probably have kept on with my original course.

 

 

A lot will depend on whether people have a diagnosis. If you have a diagnosis and explain it to the university/tutors/pastoral staff etc... it will be a lot easier. And you'll also know how far you can push yourself.

 

If you think you or your son/daughter might have an ASD and they are also thinking about going away to University/College - then my advice would be to try and get a full diagnosis one way or other before they go.

 

 

Sorry that went on a fair bit and somewhat off-topic.... but my experience as a shy young man with undiagnosed AS was that university was an unmitigating disaster!

 

[CEJesson]

Ive just seen this thread as I was about to log off and go to sleep so I'll post my perspective in the morning! I am actually Glad to see that others experience some difficulties at University. Maybe we may share similar difficulties.

[ScienceGeek]

I have really struggled this year. I went from being unemployed doing practically nothing to full-time uni plus commuting! Obviously that was a massive change, one that I didn't take so well. Our timetable wasn't the same every week, it was different every other week and then changed again if there was a practical that week. I had a notetaker but they only attend if you are there, and there were some days that I just couldn't face the train journey and the sensory overload that came with it, so when it came to exam time I had practically no notes for some subjects. What I didn't realise is I could have talked to the disability adviser at uni about it and sorted something out, by the time I got myself together enough to ask it was nearly the end of the year and too late.

 

The uni I go to is a rather noisy place, I forgot that they make a big deal about people socialising and such. You can't walk across campus without having quite a few leaflets about something to do with drinking shoved in your hand. I tend to go to classes and then go straight home, I have talked to a few people from my course, enough for a course rep (which I somehow got talked into) to get by. If I do stay at uni after class I tend to go to the library or the faith centre (the octagon). The only two places that I've managed to find a suitable amount of quiet to escape to.

 

I have some resits in August, well actually all the exams plus 3 pieces of coursework. Luckily I have been told to concentrate on 2 of the exams and the coursework. The other 2 exams don't matter as much as I won't be using the subjects after this year.

[NobbyNobbs]

The uni I go to is a rather noisy place, I forgot that they make a big deal about people socialising and such. You can't walk across campus without having quite a few leaflets about something to do with drinking shoved in your hand. I tend to go to classes and then go straight home, I have talked to a few people from my course, enough for a course rep (which I somehow got talked into) to get by. If I do stay at uni after class I tend to go to the library or the faith centre (the octagon). The only two places that I've managed to find a suitable amount of quiet to escape to.

ahh the leaflets. i look about as anti-social as is possible, and still they shove them in my hand. i dont drink. i dont go to noisy clubs. so now i go the other way round a building just to avoid another 5 leaflets encouraging those things being shoved in me hands.

 

our library is too small for the number of students because the university expands, but theres no more building room to put a bigger library. i got offered keys to a private room up there that is used by students with concentration and learning difficulties as a silent room. i didn't take it up as it was almost the end of the year and i didn't have a lot of work to do, but perhaps your university has something like that that would be even better than the main library?

 

my disability office is great. i went to them after being rebuffed by four doctors about having AS, and then seeing a psychiatric nurse who said she didn't know about it and would ask her friends (which i took literally and got very upset about). they paid for me to see a psychiatrist, and then fiddled the funding to get a full educational psychologist assessment by pretending i was dyslexic... by the end of the tests they didn't need to pretend, turns out i am! they're now doing their best to make sure i can graduate at some point, and dont go mad in the process, but times running out as my official graduation date is monday!

 

i think the only good time i've had at university was first year. there were more class hours, and i lived in halls which seemed to meet my crazy needs. i made actual friends and had a fantastic time. second year i dropped out from depression, third year half was spent being bullied by someone on my floor of halls, and half was in america which was amazing. fourth i've spent living in a 'house' in the room next to a drug addict who pushes me into walls everytime we meet on the stairs or hallway. i complained to the university, they said that there was nothing they could do as it was his word agains mine. he attacked another person in the house with a frying pan... and was given a slapped wrist and told to behave!

[Tally]

I never went because I knew I could never cope with the practicalities of living away from home at that age. I would like to do it now, but it's simply not an option. I would not cope well with shared accommodation either. I am considering studying for a degree part time by distance learning, but one of the courses I want to do involves a residential course abroad, so I don't think I will be able to do it.

[pearl]

Distance learning rocks Tally, thats part of my job, I love my distance learners cos they are not in my face all the time Why not make a start & worry about the abroad bit if/when it happens?

[bikergal]

I did my degree with the OU coz I would never be able to handle being around people all the time. It suited me fine as I'm very independent and like working alone. Never did a residential though I wouldn't rule it out if the course interested me enough.

 

I've just done a maths gcse locally but it was a small group and I coped ok Had to be taught maths as I'm so useless at it

[NobbyNobbs]

i've been recommended the OU for postgraduate work or a second degree. bikergal how did you find the self-discipline of making yourself do the work when there are other things to focus on as well?

[CEJesson]

The prospect of university was initially something I could never predict achieving - I was simply too irate and had too many severe needs to go. Moving to a new sixth form made this possibility suddenly achieveable because this period in time (c2005-2007) saw me developing some close friendships and a boom in self confidence became apparent. Therefore I had reasonable grounds to choose the university route towards career development. I have been fascinated in town planning since the age of 10 and so decided to study this at uni.

 

I have only just finished my first year (out of 4) but can say it has been a year of many benefits and disadvantages, which I would say is a healthy thing - too many advantages might leave you ill prepared should the experiences go downhill later on. University has been an intense pressure - you always feel like there is a cloud hanging over you because suddenly you are in the world where you are responsible for most things, you have no parents in charge of you except occasionally.

 

I would say 'becoming independent' has benefitted me because I can implement my routines without much obstruction. I often found at home schedules would often change (as so happens often in most scenarios) and it was very disruptive. However this does not work for everyone - there are substantial emotional demands associated with moving from home (for anyone). Living away from home appears to be something that is only a good thing when there is no hassle going on. If there are stressful situations going on at university it can increase the likelihood of homesickness. Homesickness arises for a lot of people, and it hit me between October and December 2007 in particular, with another spate of it in April this year before coming home for Easter.

 

Development of friendships has certainly been a good point over the past year - the flip side of this is that I find it very difficult to understand what to say to people my age as I am often too mature and old fashioned for some of them. However they have understood my condition (i told them at the beginning of uni) as best they can. I still have problems with noise and tend to wear earplugs in nightclubs. I never thought I'd go in one of those but have done on many occasions now, the music gets me through it!

 

Lectures are frustrating when powerpoint presentations are given and everything is all done on computer in PDF format. I really prefer paper copies at first hand, furthermore its very difficult to listen to everything and be able to handwrite any extra points made. I had a dictaphone listed as 'optional' on my DSA, and will now have one for next year. I thought I'd try without one at first but its now clear that its needed. Lecturers are often too fast for me to keep up.

 

I feel I am achieving but realise that it is bound to be difficult, I am by no means the most academically gifted person and am will be happy even with an average grade degree, providing that I have put the work in which I am doing. I must say that having a mentor on hand has really been beneficial and kick starts the rest of the week. I talk a lot about my condition but never have many situations where I feel I can discuss my issues, both positive and negative to people my own age. My mentor is actually a professor in Psychology.

 

I would say further difficulties include managing anxiety and coping with changes to schedules. I also had to cope with living in a hall of residence which wasnt originally intended. Initially this seemed daunting but I managed to integrate well and it was only the fire alarm problems that created anxieties here.

Edited June 12, 2008 by CEJesson

[bikergal]

i've been recommended the OU for postgraduate work or a second degree. bikergal how did you find the self-discipline of making yourself do the work when there are other things to focus on as well?

 

 

It is difficult, but when the essay date looms I usually catch up on the work. I'm a kind of last minute rush student, intense essay writing for a few days is how I manage. This year I'm paying for my course so that's what I remind myself of at the moment! I also like to do anything but sit down and write the essay. You do have to be strict with yourself. I'd like to do an MSc with the OU...I'm vaguely hoping to start sometime next year . I find that the OU have increasingly put much of the study material online and I can't read huge swathes of text and hope to absorb any of it this way...so I have had to request paper copies. This hasn't been too much of an inconvenience though. For me it's harder when the girls are off school, summer hols especially because I tend to like complete silence when I'm studying or writing.