UCD Access and Lifelong Learning Rochtain agus Foghlaim ar feadh an tSaoil UCD

Disability Support

All students with a disability or significant ongoing illness in UCD have the opportunity to receive relevant academic and/or exam supports. To receive these supports students are invited to complete a needs assessment with UCD Access & Lifelong Learning. To make an appointment for a needs assessment, please email us at disability@ucd.ie. 

Please note: We have recently made some changes to the documents required to register for supports. You can find details on our UCD Evidence of Disability Form

Each year your disability supports will roll over, there is no need to have another Needs Assessment meeting each year. However, if you are returning from a Leave of Absence or a break in your studies between degrees, please contact disability@ucd.ie in order to check your supports have rolled over to the new academic year.

If you have had a Needs Assessment and wish to review your supports, you can do so by emailing disability@ucd.ie to discuss with a member of the team

In Trimester One 2020/2021, UCD Access and Lifelong Learning will operate under current Government Guidelines and National Health Advice. We ask students to contact us through email on disability@ucd.ie should they need support. Our team monitors this email Monday-Friday, 9am- 5pm.

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You can register with the service at any time but it is best to register as early as possible so that any supports you require can be put in place without delay.

Follow these three steps to register:

  1. Ensure you have the correct supporting documentation. Required documents are listed on our UCD Evidence of Disability Form
  2. Make an appointment by e-mailing disability@ucd.ie. You will then be asked to complete a short form on SIS Web and upload your documents there. 
  3. Following this we will contact you with details of your appointment time/date.

Needs Assessments will take place by Zoom Video Call this year, in line with public health advice. If you would like more information on how to use Zoom, please see our Zoom Guide for Needs Assessments


All students who wish to register with UCD Access & Lifelong Learning for disability support will need to agree to both the Consent to Release Information Form and Privacy Statement.

International students should note that the supports available through your home institutions may be different to those available in UCD. It is important to note that the extra time available to students with disabilities in timed exams in UCD is 10 minutes per hour.

All students with a disability in UCD have the opportunity to receive supports. Please complete the form below to see how you can apply for disability support.

Type of Disability

Please choose the category which best describes your disability.

Do you have any of the following documentation?

At your Needs Assessments you will agree on a plan for your exam accommodations. These accommodations might include extra time (set at 10 minutes extra per hour, as per the national standard), use of the alternative exam location on campus, use of a reader etc. 

Students who require exam accommodations are advised to book a Needs Assessment appointment by week 6 of the current semester. Students who contact us after this date cannot be guaranteed their exam accommodations in the end of semester exams.

Please check your emails regularly for updates in regard to exam accommodations. For locally arranged exams, tests and midterms you must contact your module coordinator to request supports, providing your Certificate of Disability Support, as soon as possible to allow time for arrangements to be made. In Trimester One 2020/2021, any end of trimester exams are likely to be locally arranged. Please follow direction from your module coordinators in regard to examination supports, and contact your module coordinator or disability@ucd.ie with any questions.

Checking to make sure you are still registered for exam supports:
To check whether you are still registered for exam supports please log on to SIS Web, go to the Registration, Fees & Assessment tab and click on 'My Exam Supports'. If no supports are listed please email disability@ucd.ie immediately. If you have been on a Leave of Absence or have changed course your supports may not have updated this year. 

If you have availed of temporary exam supports these will be removed in the weeks following your exams - you will need to contact us to request a Needs Assessment appointment to avail of ongoing disability supports, including exam supports. 

 

At your Needs Assessments you will agree on a plan for your classroom accommodations. Examples of classroom accommodations used by students in UCD are:

  • Permission to use Assistive Technology such as a recording device in lectures, if eligible. 
  • Provision of an Irish Sign Language (ISL) Interpreter and/or Note Taker for Deaf students, if eligible.
  • Provision of required reading in an alternative format for Blind or visually impaired students, if eligible.
  • The student’s lecturer is made aware of their disability, if desired.

All international students have the opportunity to receive supports. To avail of supports, international students are also required to follow the general guidelines on registering for disability supports, as outlined in the sections above.

It is important to note that as a student in UCD you will be able to avail of the same supports as other students with disabilities in Ireland, following national legislation and best practice. Supports in Ireland can differ to those available in other countries. For example, extra time in exams is set nationally in Ireland at 10 minutes extra per hour. 

If you're a UCD student with disability support going on Erasmus or to Study Abroad and wish to seek advice on managing your disability while away please come to see us during our drop-in hour or email disability@ucd.ie to set up an appointment. 

For information on what supports may be available to you in the University in which you will be studying, please contact the disability services of that institution. UCD Global will also be able to advise you on who to contact. 

UCD Access & Lifelong Learning has prepared a selection of guides for students on how to manage particular disabilities in college. Click on the links to download guides on each of the following disabilities:

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