Step 1: Registration and Documentation
Step 1 in registering with Accessible Learning requires you to do the following:
- Review Disability Documentation Requirements.
- If applicable, review Interim Accommodations, UW Double Degree, or Service Animals.
- Complete the Accessible Learning Registration Form.
- Submit your documentation.
- Promptly respond to messages from Accessible Learning in your myLaurier inbox about next steps.
Once we receive your (a) registration form and (b) disability documentation, we will email your myLaurier email address about next steps.
What's in a Name?
We recognize that a person's name is central to their identity so getting your name right is important to us.
To ensure we have it correct, and that our system correctly picks up your preferred name from Banner, visit Preferred Name at Laurier.
Documentation Requirements
Students seeking academic accommodations for reasons of a disability at Laurier are required to submit documentation to support their request.
Disability documentation supports academic accommodation planning by:
- Confirming you are a person with a disability
- Describing how your disability affects you at school
Disability Categories
To access the correct form, select the category that best reflects your disability or disabilities. Ask a healthcare practitioner who is qualified to diagnose and treat your disability to complete your form.
Note: Students are NOT obligated to disclose their medical diagnosis to Accessible Learning when seeking academic accommodations for reasons of a disability at Laurier. Indicating the category that best reflects your disability is not the same as disclosing your diagnosis. Information about your disability category helps Accessible Learning effectively and efficiently assess your needs and design appropriate accommodation and support plans.
Email the Accessible Learning Intake Coordinator if you (a) do not know which category best reflects your disability, (b) require our forms in an alternate format, or (c) have questions about our documentation requirements.
Examples of attention disability include Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD).
Documentation
Acceptable documentation includes either:
- Accessible Learning Disability Verification Form: Attention Disability (PDF)
- Psycho-educational assessment (completed using Adult Measures)
Documentation Requirements
Whether submitting an assessment or completing the Accessible Learning Disability Verification Form, confirming an ADHD/ADD diagnosis for students at Laurier must be based on the following criteria:
- Meet the DSM-5 definition of ADHD/ADD: Individual shows a persistent pattern of inattention and/or hyperactivity-impulsivity that interferes with functioning or development
- Confirms the student exhibits five (5) or more symptoms of inattention and/or five (5) or more symptoms of hyperactivity-impulsivity
- Confirms that symptoms:
- Were present before 12 years of age;1
- Reduces functioning in two or more areas of life: home, school, work, family and friends, or other activities;
- Cannot be explained by another mental disorder such as mood, anxiety, dissociative, or personality disorders.
In assessing students for ADHD/ADD, qualified clinicians must base their diagnosis, at minimum, on the following:
- A structured diagnostic interview that assesses:
- family history
- relevant development and academic markers
- presence/absence of co-existing disorders (e.g., mood or anxiety disorders, substance use, Neuromedical conditions, symptom exaggeration)
- other conditions or behaviors that can mimic ADHD
- Data from different sources – student, significant other, parents, school records and employment records;
- Confirmation that symptoms were present prior to age 12, even if symptoms were not functionally limiting until adolescence;
- Confirmation that symptoms have been present for at least 6 months;
- Clinical observations of hyperactive behavior, impulsive speech, and/or distractibility;
- Established impairment in one or more life areas, including social, academic, or employment settings;
- Accounting for periods when student was symptom free (if applicable);
- Details of ADHD medication use and treatment response (if applicable).
Practitioners must verify either in an assessment report or on the Accessible Learning Disability Verification Form they have diagnosed the student with ADHD/ADD in accordance with the above criteria.
Laurier does not accept documentation or assessments confirming an ADHD/ADD diagnosis made solely from a symptom count-based checklist or rating scale.
Laurier does not accept assessments from online clinics like Frida and ACE Clinics which currently do not meet our standards.
Qualified Professionals
Qualified medical professionals with training in differential diagnosis of ADHD and other psychiatric disorders who may complete Laurier’s documentation include:
- Registered psychologist
- Psychiatrist
- Family physician
- Nurse Practitioner
1Individuals can exhibit ADHD symptoms in childhood but not be diagnosed until adulthood because of dismissive attitudes or because supportive environments and/or cognitive strengths mitigated childhood symptoms (Mitchell et al., 2019).
Mitchell, J. T., et al. (2019). A qualitative analysis of contextual factors relevant to suspected late-onset ADHD. Journal of Attention Disorders, 25(5), 724–735. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1087054719837743
Examples of brain injury include acquired brain injury, concussion, or post-concussive syndrome.
You may be required to provide updated documentation throughout your degree in order to determine if your disability remains, if functional limitations have changed, and if accommodations are still required.
Documentation
Acceptable documentation includes either:
- Accessible Learning Disability Verification Form: Brain Injury (PDF)
- Neuro-psychological assessment completed within the past six months (completed using Adult Measures)
- Current medical assessment including SCATS, dated within the past six months
Qualified Professionals
Medical professionals qualified to complete documentation include:
- Neurologist
- Neuropsychologist
- Psychologist
- Psychiatrist
- Psychological associate
- Family physician
- Sports medicine physician
- Nurse Practitioner
Examples of autism spectrum disorder include autism spectrum disorder or social pragmatic communication disorder.
Documentation
Acceptable documentation includes either:
- Accessible Learning Disability Verification Form: Medical (PDF)
- Psycho-educational assessment (completed using Adult Measures)
- Neuro-psychological assessment (completed using Adult Measures)
Qualified Professionals
Medical professionals qualified to complete documentation include:
- Registered psychologist
- Psychiatrist
- Family physician
- Developmental pediatrician
Examples of a hearing-related disability include deaf, deafened, hearing loss, central auditory processing disorder.
Documentation
Acceptable documentation includes either:
- Accessible Learning Disability Verification Form: Hearing Impairement (PDF)
- Current audiologist assessment (completed within past year)
Qualified Professionals
Medical professionals qualified to complete documentation include:
- Audiologist
- Family physician
Documentation
Acceptable documentation includes a Psycho-Educational Assessment completed using Adult Measures.
A Psycho-Educational Assessment must include the following:
- Appropriate standardized tests of ability; for example, the WAIS-IV;
- Appropriate standardized tests of Information Process; for example, the WMS-IV;
- Appropriate standardized tests of achievement. Ideally, each of the following achievement areas are sampled:
- reading (decoding, comprehension, fluency)
- writing (mechanics, expression, fluency)
- math (calculation, conceptualization, fluency)
- memory (Working, Auditory, Visual – immediate and delayed)
- Evidence of a significant discrepancy between (at least) normal ability and one or more achievement areas (such as reading, writing, and math), along with evidence of a significant impairment in at least one type of information processing that may logically account for this discrepancy;
- Relevant medical developmental, educational, and family history;
- The ruling out of other potential causes of the discrepancy noted above;
- Behavioural observations and a statement confirming the validity of test results;
- Test results reported and interpreted;
- A clear diagnostic statement;
- Recommendations and suggestions directly tied to test results, relevant to the postsecondary setting.
Qualified Professionals
Medical professionals qualified to complete documentation include (signature required):
- A registered, licensed psychologist
- Psychological associate
Examples of a medical disability include cancer, diabetes, epilepsy/seizure disorder, or chronic fatigue syndrome.
Documentation
Acceptable documentation includes:
Qualified Professionals
Medical Professionals qualified to complete documentation include:
- Specialist physician
- Family physician
- Nurse Practitioner
Examples of mental health or psychiatric disability include Generalized Anxiety Disorder, Major Depressive Disorder, Borderline Personality Disorder, Eating Disorder, etc.
Documentation
Acceptable documentation includes:
Qualified Professionals
Medical Professionals qualified to complete documentation include:
- Registered psychologist
- Psychiatrist
- Family physician
- Nurse Practitioner
Documentation
Acceptable documentation includes:
Qualified Professionals
Medical professionals qualified to complete documentation include:
- Rheumatologist
- Chiropractor
- Neurologist
- Sports medicine physician
- Orthopedist
- Family physician
- Nurse Practitioner
Examples of vision-related disability include cataracts, glaucoma, nystagmus, retinal detachment or blindness.
Note: Laurier does not accept documentation citing Irlen Syndrome as the student's sole disability/condition. Laurier notes a statement by the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Ophthalmologists that Irlen Syndrome is not recognized by the medical community or the World Health Organization.
Documentation
Acceptable documentation includes:
- Accessible Learning Disability Verification Form: Vision (PDF)
- Ophthalmologist’s report
- Physician assessment
- CNIB card/registration number
Qualified Professionals
Medical professionals qualified to complete documentation include:
- Ophthalmologist
- Optometrist
- Family physician
Students who do not have disability documentation may be eligible for interim accommodations and support while waiting to obtain documentation. Interim accommodations usually expire after one or two terms.
Students seeking interim accommodations should submit any documentation they have including Grade 12 Individual Education Plans (IEP), outdated psycho-educational assessments, or letters from health care providers (HCP). Letters must be dated, on original letterhead and contain the HCP's signature and license number.
Interim academic accommodations granted in:
- Fall term will expire on April 30
- Winter term will expire on Aug. 31
- Spring/summer term will expire on Dec. 31
Students must submit updated documentation before their interim accommodations expire.
Students enrolled in the double-degree program with the University of Waterloo who wish to use their accommodations for exams must register and book exam accommodations in accordance with published deadlines.
Laurier students with disabilities enrolled in a double degree program, and whose home institution is the University of Waterloo, must:
- Register with UWAccessAbility Services first
- Register with Accessible Learning once UW approves their accommodation plan
- Upload UW Verification of Academic Accommodations as documentation to Accessible Learning
Accessible Learning and AccessAbility Services will try to provide identical accommodations across both institutions. After receiving the student's UW accommodation plan, Accessible Learning will input easily transferrable accommodations into our online system and email the student at their myLaurier email address instructions for how to access their accommodations and book their accommodated exams.
Students with more complex accommodations or those not easily transferred to the Laurier learning environment will be required to meet with the Inkake Coordinator or an Accessible Learning consultant. Students may also be asked to submit supporting documentation for accommodations, including documentation submitted to UW or new documentation.
Please contact the Intake Coordinator with any questions.
Students who disabilities who rely on a service animal to access or engage with any part of Laurier campus and our placement partners must register with Accessible Learning.
Documentation
Acceptable documentation includes:
Qualified Professionals
Healthcare professionals qualified to complete the Service Animals on Campus Documentation Form include:
- Audiologist
- Speech-Language Pathologist
- Nurse Practitioner
- Optometrist
- Family Physician
- Psychiatrist
- Psychologist
Submit Documentation
Do not email a copy of your documentation to Accessible Learning. Accessible Learning will not accept emailed or faxed copies of documentation due to security and privacy concerns.
Prepare Your Documentation
Documentation must: (a) include all the pages, (b) be legible and, (c) uploaded in a single PDF file. Convert photos to a single PDF file if submitting photos of your documentation.
Accessible Learning will not review illegible or incomplete documentation.
If you:
- are new to Accessible Learning and completing the registration form, include your documentation with the form
- submitted the Accessible Learning Registration Form but did not include your documentation, email accessible_learning@wlu.ca for a unique and secure upload link
- are registered and active with Accessible Learning and want to submit new or additional documentation,
- Log in to Accessible Learning Online
- Click the "Additional Documentation Submission" button