"Succeeding In College On The Autistic Spectrum" by Kate Goldfield

"Succeeding In College On The Autistic Spectrum"
Published by Admin on 2007/3/3
by Kate Goldfield
The Autistic Self Advocacy Network

College can be a very daunting prospect for anyone, but if you have an autism spectrum disorder, it can be downright terrifying. Living on campus? Interacting with other people? Being away from home? It can sound like a nightmare to many people. But if you know a few things before you start, it can become a very manageable prospect, that anyone can do, even you.

I would like to share with you what I believe the most important tips are to succeeding in college with an autism spectrum disorder.

1) Most importantly, make connections with whoever you can. These will become your lifeline. Try to befriend your professors - they are often much easier to interact with than your peers. Try to choose a college small enough where you will be able to have a relationship with your professors. Stay after class and talk to them about the assignment or a particular idea you had about one of the topics from class. Comment about the weather. Ask their opinion of school wide issues. Any kind of repeated small talk leads to a feeling of connection, and a genuine friendship. When you need to talk about more serious issues or need help with something, you will have natural allies. These connections will keep you from feeling too lonely, and give you a sense of connection to and belonging within the college. You will most likely find doing this with professors much easier than with your peers.

2. The second most important thing I can bestow on you in order to be able to succeed in college is to accept that you are different. Don't waste all your time comparing yourself to others. Know that you may appear different, talk different, walk different, have different interests, yada yada. It's not worth beating yourself up over. You've known this for a long time, it's old news. If you choose the right college, the student body won't care that you're different. Look for smaller, quirky colleges with a more welcoming student body. At my college, I was quite self conscious my first couple of years, but eventually grew into myself and didn't care that I appeared different. Instead, I reveled in it. This gave me more confidence when interacting with my peers and helped me to make friends.

3. Take classes in what you are truly interested in, not what other people tell you to. Boredom is the most surefire way to fail academically. Follow your passions. Make the material your own. When you are assigned a project or a paper, think to yourself, "What do I want to say about the world, or myself? What do I want to find out about the world or myself? How I can express this in this paper in a meaningful way?" Find something that engages you, and you will excell academically and really get something out of the process in the meantime. At my college, I really enjoyed when we got to do portfolios in my psychology classes. We were allowed to express our learning of the material in any way we wished: through essays, song lyrics, paintings, research papers, or whatever we liked. I was able to really explore myself and the world around me while doing these portfolios.

Copyright 2009 The Autistic Self Advocacy Network

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