Study Abroad for Students with Disabilities: 3 Key Points
Last week I attended Mobility International USA’s (MIUSA) “Joining Hands” Symposium. The focus was disability and international exchange. I presented on disability accommodations abroad, focusing on 3 key points to assist students with disabilities and the people who support them in ensuring a smooth path to study abroad or international exchange. Here is a brief synopsis of that presentation:
- Details: Before students with disabilities go abroad, they need to make sure that they have appropriate and effective accessible technology. The key piece here is making sure that the technology that they already use will work in the country they are going to. For example, can they bring a US cell phone or do they need to buy one in country? Can they buy or borrow other technology in that country, or do they need to have it shipped? If you are using a power wheelchair, does the host country use the same voltage as the US? Do you need to bring spare parts/battery?
- Communication: Having a phone call or video chat with the host institution or organization can be very helpful in order to get a sense of the location and to better prepare. This is also an opportunity to ask questions about housing, transportation, etc.
- Context: It’s important to get a sense of the culture around disability in the country. People may have different perceptions of people with disabilities and they may have less exposure to people with disabilities in school or work settings. Mentally preparing yourself for the differences and having good strategies to address stress and frustration is key.
It can be very intimidating to consider going abroad. One thing I usually suggest is finding other people who have similar disabilities who have done it. Luckily MIUSA maintains a ton of stories and information (Link to MIUSA page: http://www.miusa.org/plan/americans-abroad). Reach out to me if you have questions: annie@accessiblecollege.com
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