Can I get into the University of Michigan?

If i am in the IEP, can i still get accepted to University of Michigan?

• I have a 3.5 GPA with all A's and B's and i am still in the IEP... I live in Michigan (8th grade).... My teachers say i have a hard time communicating with others and it's true. I just don't like talking to other people. I usually talk when important stuff goes on like a project or presentation... Once, i overheard my teachers saying that i might be autistic... I'm scared that i might not be accepted to University of Michigan... I am thinking about moving to a different school district... Should i do that? I am also going to take at least 3 AP classes in high school... Please i need advice!

• Answer:

  Plenty of autistic and other students with IEPs go on to college. It is illegal for schools to not take a student just because they have a disability. It has been illegal for more than 30 years. You will need to prove that you are a good student just like anyone else, even though you may have to do it in a different way than your classmates. And your IEP in high school is going to be the plan for making sure you get the support you need to do that. What you will need to do is to educate yourself on the difference between disability rights in the K-12 system (under IDEA) and disability rights in the college and university system (under Section 504/ADA). You have different rights because the systems are designed to do different things. If you think you may need accommodations anywhere in the system (in Housing, in your meal plan, in the dormitory, etc. -- for instance, do you think you will be okay living with a roommate in a small dorm room?) you will want to make sure that you have updated documentation (probably obtained when you are in the 12th grade) that will satisfy your university's requirements. If I were you, I would make sure that I attended all IEP meetings for the next 4 years, that I fully understood why I had certain goals and certain supports written into my IEP, and that preparing for the transition to college was written into my IEP for all 4 years. You will want to make sure that you are taking college prep courses with accommodations, if you need them, rather than having them waived. You should not be overhearing things like possible diagnoses; people should say them directly to your face, because in 4 1/2 years you are going to be the person in charge of handling your accommodations. If you are unable to talk in some settings, as opposed to just choosing not to talk, you will want to see whether you can be evaluated for an augmentative communication device. If you have difficulty handling disagreements with other people or advocating for yourself, you will want your IEP to specifically address helping you learn those skills. If you want to move to a different school district because there is something there that you think will be good for you, by all means, go. If you want to move to a different school district because there are problems in your current school district, it might be a good idea. If you want to move because you don't want there to be a record of you having been in special education, I don't recommend it. A history of being in special education is not going to keep you out of college, and you will do a lot better if you focus on learning how to be a successful student with a disability in college than you will if you try to pretend that you are not a student with a disability. Good luck.