Top 10 Best Online Schools for Students with Disabilities
Online education has become an invaluable resource, providing flexible learning opportunities for students across the globe. And for individuals with ... read more...disabilities, the right online school can significantly impact their educational journey. We researched carefully and selected the ten best online schools for students with disabilities, ensuring that students of all abilities can thrive in the virtual learning environment.
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Johns Hopkins University is one of the best online schools for students with disabilities. The university wants to ensure that students, employees, and visitors with disabilities can use everything the university offers, including programs, buildings, technology, and websites.
This outstanding school offers different kinds of help for students with disabilities who are learning from a distance. They provide audio recordings of course materials, reading and writing software, and other tools. They also have exciting online programs for K-12 students with disabilities through their Center for Talented Youth.
Online courses at Johns Hopkins University are made to be easy to use. This means adding captions to videos, using technology that works well with screen readers, and ensuring these technologies can read course materials. If students have a disability, they can ask for help, like extra time for exams and accessible course materials.
To get this help, students need to fill out a form asking for disability support. Students must also write a letter about their disability and what they need. Students will work with someone to make a plan that fits their needs. Johns Hopkins University keeps its disability information private and expects all students to behave well and focus on their studies.Detailed information:
- Founded: 1876
- Address: Baltimore, MD 21218, United States
- Phone: +1 410-516-8000
- Website: https://www.jhu.edu/academics/online/
- Tuition and Fees: $58,720 (2021 – 2022)
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Walden University is committed to helping students with disabilities in its online programs. The university wants to ensure all students have equal access to education and a supportive online learning experience.
They offer different types of help to individual students, including extra time for assignments and tests, alternative formats for course materials (like larger text or electronically read content), and access to local service programs. Walden University also supports various restrictions students may have due to sensory, physical, medical, psychological, and cognitive limitations. Additionally, the university offers aids and services for students with visual, hearing, and speech disabilities.
Walden University makes its online courses accessible to use. This involves adding captions to videos, using easy-to-navigate learning systems, and ensuring everything works well with tools like screen readers. The university might also provide tools like software that reads text aloud or converts speech to text, catering to different learning styles.
If you're considering joining Walden University's online programs and have a disability, there's a process to ask for help. You'll need to share documentation about your disability and work with the university's support services to create a plan that suits your needs. It's essential to inform the university about your disability before starting a class, provide the necessary documentation, and keep open communication with your professors throughout the course.Detailed information:
- Founded: 1970
- Address: S Washington Ave, Minneapolis, MN 55401, United States
- Phone: 866-492-5336.
- Website: https://www.waldenu.edu/
- Tuition and Fees: $12,180 (2021-2022)
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Established in 1868, Oregon State University (OSU) is a well-known public research university in Corvallis, Oregon, USA. OSU provides a variety of undergraduate and graduate programs in different subjects, and it's known for its excellent programs in forestry, oceanography, agriculture, engineering, and environmental sciences. Additionally, OSU is committed to helping students with disabilities, including those in its online programs.
The main office that assists students with disabilities at OSU is called Disability Access Services (DAS). DAS works closely with students to offer support, accommodations, education, and advocacy for qualified individuals with disabilities at Oregon State University. DAS helps students not only in Corvallis but also at OSU-Cascades and for those studying online through the OSU E-campus program.
Students with disabilities at OSU, including those in online programs, can request various accommodations. This might include more time for exams, accessible course materials, note-taking assistance, and other reasonable changes based on your needs. DAS provides specific help like captioned media, note-taking services, alternative formats for coursework, interpreters, and accessible testing.
Students with disabilities who plan to enroll in Oregon State University's online programs typically go through a process to request accommodations. They will share information about your disability and work with the Disability Access Services office to create a plan that suits your needs. The university takes privacy seriously and keeps information about students' disabilities private to respect their privacy.Detailed information:
- Founded: 1868
- Address: Corvallis, OR 97331, United States
- Phone: +1 541-737-1000
- Website: https://oregonstate.edu/
- Tuition and Fees: $12,188 - $31,579 (2022-2023)
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The University of Texas at Austin is a school that helps students facing different challenges and disabilities in Austin, Texas. UT Austin's Services for Students with Disabilities (SSD) office is the central place for supporting students with disabilities. This office ensures that students with disabilities have the same opportunities for education, including online courses.
The university is ready to offer help, like alternative text, adaptive testing, assistive technologies, and support from sign language interpreters or CART services. UT understands that while online classes can be flexible, there are specific things to consider for students with disabilities.
UT Austin encourages students, teachers, and the SSD office to talk openly with each other. This helps ensure that each student's needs are cared for and makes online learning a supportive experience. The university also provides different ways to get financial help, like grants, loans, student jobs, and scholarships.
For online UT students to get help from the Services for Students with Disabilities (SSD) department, they need to fill out a form called Request for UEX Accommodations and give it to a disabilities services coordinator. Students also need to share the correct medical information to confirm their disability. This helps the SSD provide the right help based on each student's needs.Detailed information:
- Founded: 1883
- Address: 2515 Speedway, Austin, TX 78712, United States
- Phone: +1 512-471-3434
- Website: https://www.utexas.edu/
- Tuition and Fees: $11,752 (1 term) - $40,996 (1 year)
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SUNY Empire State College is a public school in the State University of New York (SUNY) system. It offers flexible and innovative education. The college is committed to making education inclusive and accessible, especially for disabled students, in its online programs. The Office of Collegewide Disability Services at Empire State College aims to provide equal opportunities for success to all students with disabilities.
The college provides Accessibility Services to support students with disabilities, ensuring everyone has equal access to educational resources, including online courses. Accommodations can include better access to instructors, follow-up emails, and phone calls to explain information online.
The college is ready to help students with disabilities by offering coursework and materials in different formats, supporting online discussions, giving extra time for tests and assignments, and tailoring help to individual needs. The college is well-respected for caring about the needs of its disabled students and offers various financial and academic support.
SUNY Empire State College gives fair accommodations and help to all students with disabilities, following ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act rules. While the main coursework stays the same, ESC works closely with students for the best service. Students must complete the Disability Declaration and Request for Accommodations form to get help. The college wants students, faculty, and Accessibility Services to talk openly to ensure everyone's needs are met.Detailed information:
- Founded: 1971
- Address: 4 Park Ave, New York, NY 10016, United States
- Phone: +1 212-647-7800
- Website: https://www.sunyempire.edu/
- Tuition and Fees: $7,630 (1 term) - $17,540 (1 year)
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Founded in 1880, the University of Southern California (USC) is one of California's oldest private research universities. The university has a strong group of successful alumni, including those with disabilities. USC is committed to helping students through its Disability Services and Programs, supporting self-discovery, interactions with professors, and improving self-determination skills.
The dedicated team at the Department of Disability Services and Programs at USC ensures highly accessible accommodations for exams and classes. During exams, students receive extra time (time and a half), a giant print upon request, a two-hour break between exams, and the option for a reader or a scribe.
For online classes, projects, and assignments, students with disabilities can use various accommodations, including note-takers, giant print, CART (Communication Access Realtime Translation), sign language interpreters, and tape recorders. Additional support includes braille text for books, course materials, and e-texts. The DSP staff is a great team dedicated to creating an inclusive USC environment through reasonable accommodations, training, and collaboration.
As a selective institution with a competitive admissions process, USC requires online students with disabilities to submit appropriate medical documentation for disability confirmation. They must be registered and approved with the Department of Disability Services and Programs. USC offers various financial aid options, including institutional, departmental, and external scholarship opportunities, student employment programs, fellowships, assistantships, federal and private loans, state grants, and flexible payment plans.Detailed information:
- Founded: 1880
- Address: Los Angeles, CA 90007, United States
- Phone: +1 213-740-2311
- Website: https://www.usc.edu/
- Tuition and Fees: $61,503 (2021-2022)
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Shorter University is a private coeducational school in Rome, Georgia, USA. It follows Christian values in its education and offers programs like liberal arts, business, education, nursing, and natural sciences for disabled students.
The goal of Shorter University Disabilities Services is to make sure that students with disabilities can fully participate in the University's programs and activities. This means providing fair access according to the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990. They use appropriate policies and offer reasonable accommodations.
Resources for students with disabilities are decided based on their needs. Each accommodation is designed to match the student's limitations and help them succeed. Students work with disability services professionals to figure out the best accommodations.
Students with disabilities at Shorter University must meet with the Director of Student Support Services. They must give medical documents showing their disability and explain why they need specific accommodations. Students must then talk to their instructors about their needs.Detailed information:
- Founded: 1873
- Address: 315 Shorter Ave, Rome, GA 30165, United States
- Phone: +1 706-291-2121
- Website: https://www.shorter.edu/
- Tuition and Fees: $22,810 (2021-2022)
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Penn State World Campus is the online platform for The Pennsylvania State University, a prominent and respected research university in the United States. The university wants all students to have a great learning experience. They focus on making courses accessible for students with disabilities, like those who have trouble seeing hearing, or have conditions like ADHD.
This school is well-known for its online programs and includes accommodations in the coursework, whether students need them or not. This makes it easier to provide accommodations if they are required. Designing courses to be more accessible for students with disabilities makes them better for all online classes.
All course materials, including videos, have transcripts available. Information is presented in different ways and on other platforms. Complex information like charts and diagrams comes with detailed text descriptions to help everyone understand. The school has invested in advanced technologies to assist students in challenging STEM courses.
If students need more help, the Office of Disability Services works directly with them to make sure coursework is accessible. Students with disabilities get access to assistive technologies and services. They usually get extra time for exams, assignments, and coursework. They also get priority when registering for classes.
To get accommodations, students must have a visible or documented disability as outlined by the ADA. They need to contact the school's World Campus Disability Contact Liaison to ask for accommodations and meet with a Disability Specialist each semester to get an academic adjustment letter for individual classes.Detailed information:
- Founded: 1998
- Address: 128 Outreach Building, University Park, PA 16802, United States
- Phone: +1 814-865-5403
- Website: https://www.worldcampus.psu.edu/
- Tuition and Fees: $19,672 (1 term) - $41,126 (1 year)
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The University of Rhode Island (URI) is a public research university in Kingston, Rhode Island, USA. They make it easy for everyone to access, talk about things, and participate by offering new and creative services, programs, leadership, and teamwork. Disability Services for Students works with students and all parts of URI to make learning and working places that include and last for everyone.
At URI, Disability Services and the Office of Online Education work together to give an inclusive online education. Online teachers are taught to make their courses suitable for all students.
Students work with Disability Services counselors who help them in school. These counselors ensure students get what they need for programs, courses, and exams. DSS counselors also help students go through the steps to get what they need, like special tools, interpreters, CART services, unique books and texts, and changes to class materials.
To get into URI and get money help, students need to show papers from a doctor saying what their problem is. URI Disability Services workers help students make the papers they need. Students must ask for help every semester for each class they're taking.Detailed information:
- Founded: 1892
- Address: 45 Upper College Rd, Kingston, RI 02881, United States
- Phone: +1 401-874-1000
- Website: https://www.uri.edu/
- Tuition and Fees: $15,332 (1 term) - $33,354 (1 year)
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Chemeketa Community College is a school in Oregon, USA. They offer different classes, like ones that let you transfer to another school, lessons to learn specific skills, certificates, and job training. You can also get a two-year degree in arts, science, general studies, and applied science. If you're learning online because you can't come to the campus, Chemeketa makes sure you get the same help as students who come to classes in person.
You will work with teachers, specialists, advisors, and counselors who are there to help people with disabilities. If you're taking classes online, the school gives you many tools and things to help you. They make sure you get the support you need to do your courses without too much stress because of your disability. This might include unique class materials, tools to help you, different ways to get information, someone to help you take notes, test changes, and class support.
The people helping students with disabilities at Chemeketa want to ensure everyone has the same chance to do well in their classes. They follow the rules from laws like the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.
For money help, students can get different kinds of grants, scholarships, loans, and jobs. Just make sure to give the people in charge of helping students with disabilities your papers that show they have a disability two weeks before they need any exceptional help.Detailed information:
- Founded: 1969
- Address: 4000 Lancaster Dr NE, Salem, OR 97305, United States
- Phone: +1 503-399-5000
- Website: https://www.chemeketa.edu/
- Tuition and Fees: $5,850 (1 term) - $13,275 (1 year)