College prep for students with autism
commentary by Daniel Duerden | February 21, 2012
As thousands of young students diagnosed with autism and Asperger’s syndrome approach high school graduation, many are now looking toward higher education. With the proper preparations, college can be a wonderful, enriching experience that will help the student better adapt to living an independent life.
Those diagnosed with autism and Asperger’s syndrome, are often especially talented and bright intellectually, while struggling with social cues. College can provide an environment that allows them to thrive intellectually, while helping them become independent and more socially active.
College preparation is something that all students should do. However, parents of students diagnosed with autism have extra things to take into account when preparing their child for college.
For example, extra special care may need to be taken in choosing which school to attend.
Initially, many parents may want to have their children diagnosed with autism to attend a smaller school that is closer to home, allowing the student to live at home or have the option to come home easily. This is a great option, and can often help the student transition from high school coursework to university coursework.
However, there are some universities around the country that have specific programs dedicated toward helping students with various forms of autism not only get an education but thrive socially as well. At the same time, these universities also do what they can to promote awareness and acceptance of such students.
For example, Mercyhurst College in Erie, Penn. has a groundbreaking program dedicated to helping students with autism and Asperger’s syndrome. Launched in 2008, the Asperger’s Initiative at Mercyhurst (AIM) program, not only helps students navigate through their college coursework, but they also provide individual and group help with building communication skills and developing social skills.
One such example of one of their students comes from a report out of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Nick Pusateri, a student diagnosed with Autism at the age of two, has thrived in their program and made great strides toward an independent life. Through their program, Nick has become independent living with other students on the autism spectrum, surprising his even his parents.
“He lives with two other guys on the spectrum. He does his own cooking, his own laundry, his own shopping,” Dorothy Pusateri said to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. “If you'd have said, when he was a freshman or sophomore in high school, ‘Can he do that?’ I would've said, ‘Nope. That's not in the realm of possibility.’”
While these programs can cost extra, the AIM program costs about $4,000 on top of regular tuition costs, they can prove instrumental in socially developing a student with autism. Other universities like Drexel, Rutgers, University of Alabama, Boston University and Eastern Michigan University have similar programs to the AIM program.
In addition to selecting the right program for a student with autism, it is important to also pay attention to special needs that may arise in completing college coursework. For example, students with autism can have trouble with time management and note-taking, two skills that plague nearly every student.
However, because each autism diagnosis is different, it can be difficult to identify a standard set of skills and needs a child will need to focus on in order to make the transition to college. This makes it extra important to communicate with teachers and specialists to identify which areas the child needs to focus on to prepare for college.
The number of autism diagnoses has sharply increased in the past few decades, rising from one in every 2,000 children before 1990 to one in every 110 in 2006. Because of this more students are rapidly approaching college age, which universities and parents now need to properly prepare for these children’s future.
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