Students with Disabilties at University College Cork Graduate and Achieve Success on Parity with their Peers in Professional Degree Programmes

In 2007/08 over 500 students registered with the Disability Support Service in University College Cork. Students registered with the service included students with physical and sensory disabilities, students with medical and mental health conditions and students with specific learning difficulties such as dyslexia. These students study in degree programmes across the four Colleges in the University.Educational supports such as alternative examination arrangements, notetaking supports, Irish Sign Language Interpreters and dyslexia support enable students access the learning environment on a daily basis.The role of Assistive Technology is central to empowering students with disabilities. Students are assessed and trained to use a wide range of assistive technologies, as part of their learning experience in UCC. The Assistive Technology Unit which consists of an assessment centre, specialised lab with 8 work stations with a range of specialised software and IT equipment is integrated into the Boole Library thereby giving students access to the learning hub of the University. The Alternative Media Section convert texts into Braille and electronic formats to enable 8 blind students and 24 vision impaired students access required reading lists for their studies.