A disability can be physical, mental or sensory. Examples include Crohn’s disease, blindness or visual impairment, an anxiety disorder or ADHD. Studying should be accessible to everyone, even if you have a disability or chronic illness. If you have a disability and intend to study, you are entitled to support and accommodations. These may include extra time for your exams, modifications to classrooms or buildings, and financial arrangements.
These include:
- Financial arrangements, such as the study allowance, the student support fund, or the performance grant.
- Assistive devices that you can request from the UWV, such as an interpreter or speech recognition software.
- Platforms for students with a disability or chronic illness. For example, Utrecht University has the Platform Onbeperkt Studeren (Unlimited Studying Platform), and Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences has the platform Limitless. Check with your own educational institution to see if they also have a platform.
For more information about these rights, please visit the website hbo/wo toegankelijk.
Most facilities can be requested from your educational institution itself, for example from the student counsellor or a student supervisor. It is important that you inform your school or university in good time that you need an adjustment or facility, for example if you want a postponement for a deadline. Often, a counsellor or supervisor can do more for you if they know in advance what you will need.
Do you have a question about your rights, or are you unable to resolve an issue with your school or university? Contact our student helpline!
What does the LSVb do for inclusive education?
Experience shows that many schools and universities do not always have everything properly organised. We often receive reports from students that they do not know where to turn. We also regularly hear that students are not receiving the adjustments they are entitled to. The LSVb is committed to improving the position of students with disabilities or chronic illnesses. We have done this in the following ways:
- We wrote an action plan on inclusive student housing;
- We created a toolkit for quiet rooms;
- We campaigned for a fair study allowance.
Experience shows that educational institutions do not always have everything properly organised. Would you like to know what your rights are? You can read more about this on the Hoger Onderwijs Toegankelijk website.
No functional impairment, but a lot of stress?
There are also many students who do not have a diagnosed problem, but who experience a lot of stress and are affected by it. These are students who experience mental pressure. If you carry mental pressure around with you for too long, it can develop into, for example, a mental disorder, depression or burnout. More information can be found at “Mental health, performance pressure and study stress”.