Dive Brief:
- When students show up to college with serious medical conditions, it's on them to notify their schools of their needs — but it is then up to the institution to coordinate their care.
- University Business reports that best practices include contacting students who indicate chronic conditions on health forms to be proactive about care, coordinating across departments for individual health plans, and making academic accommodations based on individual student needs.
- When students have to leave school because of their conditions, institutional medical leave policies should be in place to formalize their exit and the process by which they can re-enroll.
Dive Insight:
Unlike in K-12, where schools assign accommodations for students with parental input and bear the burden of identifying students who need them, colleges cannot treat students with medical conditions or other special needs any differently than their peers until a student requests the accommodation. Otherwise, it is considered discrimination.
This is important for students who have autism spectrum disorders or other learning disabilities and go to college hoping to remain anonymous. Research indicates as many as 80% of students on the autism spectrum do not complete their degrees, and there is a growing population of children with the disorder who will soon arrive on college campuses. The job of higher education institutions, then, is to create an environment in which students feel comfortable disclosing their needs.