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paxfilosoof
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24 May 2014, 3:13 am

SteelMaiden wrote:
I'm not an Engineering student (although my dad has a PhD in Civil Engineering), but I study Pharmacology at one of the top universities in the UK and they provided me with a full time support worker from an autism charity. She comes with me to all my lectures, practicals, workshops and tutorials. Without her I wouldn't be able enter the uni at all. I've had meltdowns involving punching dents in walls, head banging, screaming etc at uni but she knows exactly how to calm me down. She also communicates for me with other people as I struggle badly with communication. Full time support workers are difficult to get though.


Cool, can you give me some more specific information, I also want something like you.



paxfilosoof
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24 May 2014, 3:16 am

SteelMaiden wrote:
I'm not an Engineering student (although my dad has a PhD in Civil Engineering), but I study Pharmacology at one of the top universities in the UK and they provided me with a full time support worker from an autism charity. She comes with me to all my lectures, practicals, workshops and tutorials. Without her I wouldn't be able enter the uni at all. I've had meltdowns involving punching dents in walls, head banging, screaming etc at uni but she knows exactly how to calm me down. She also communicates for me with other people as I struggle badly with communication. Full time support workers are difficult to get though.


I actually want to be a civil engineer :)

I did some tests for engineer-architect, which in my opinion where easy.
I more interested in the theoretical aspects of engineer than architecture.
So I think I'll chose to be an civil engineer :)

Excuse me for my bad English grammar,
it's not my first language.



cyberdad
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24 May 2014, 3:43 am

ImeldaJace wrote:
From my experience so far, Universities are FULL aspies. )

Scoured the internet and couldn't find evidence of this?



SteelMaiden
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24 May 2014, 3:51 am

paxfilosoof wrote:
SteelMaiden wrote:
I'm not an Engineering student (although my dad has a PhD in Civil Engineering), but I study Pharmacology at one of the top universities in the UK and they provided me with a full time support worker from an autism charity. She comes with me to all my lectures, practicals, workshops and tutorials. Without her I wouldn't be able enter the uni at all. I've had meltdowns involving punching dents in walls, head banging, screaming etc at uni but she knows exactly how to calm me down. She also communicates for me with other people as I struggle badly with communication. Full time support workers are difficult to get though.


Cool, can you give me some more specific information, I also want something like you.


I live in the UK. Here the National Autistic Society support me through Disabled Students Allowance, which is a government-paid grant for those who are disabled and in need of extra help. If you contact the universities and ask about their disability services and if you can get a support worker through DSA. You have to do it well in advance though, as these things take a long time. If they are reluctant, keep pushing them a bit.


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starkid
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24 May 2014, 1:49 pm

paxfilosoof wrote:
I also want to be an engineer, but I worry a little about the classes. In school I always had difficulties because of bullying/and I can't follow easily what the teacher in the class says. I'm better in self-education/self-learning. But people tell me in higher education you also have to go to class otherwise you can never pass/succeed.
I hope this isn't true!


One does need to go to class, but, for STEM curriculum, this is necessary mainly to stay updated on assignment due dates and tests. It's usually the non-STEM majors who have to worry about things like class participation and lessons that aren't in the textbooks.

I had great trouble following lectures at university, but was able to pass classes because I did well with reading the text books and focused on copying the example problems the professors worked on the board. It might also help to audio record lessons so that you can re-play them later.



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25 May 2014, 10:53 pm

Part way through Civil grad studies. The daily homework in engineering classes is a pain (as I work and think best in project situations), it is a difficult course of study, but very doable.


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nebrets
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25 May 2014, 11:01 pm

paxfilosoof wrote:
NicholasName wrote:
I'm going to be an engineer! I found a university with a really, really good disability program, and if I can get in, it should be much easier than the nightmare that was my previous schooling. I've never had problems with studying (I've actually never needed to study much...), but I had HORRIBLE problems with homework.

I recommend either starting at a community college or finding a "regular" college/university with a really good disability program. Before even thinking about applying anywhere, contact their disability services office and make sure they can give you the accommodations you need. If they can't, run for the hills! Er, I mean, find somewhere else.

I also cannot recommend occupational therapy enough. It might be hard to find someone who treats adults, though. If you have a hard time, start contacting the occupational therapy departments at big hospitals and universities; that's how I found mine. A good OT can help you with all kinds of sensory and self-regulation things.

Good luck!


I also want to be an engineer, but I worry a little about the classes. In school I always had difficulties because of bullying/and I can't follow easily what the teacher in the class says. I'm better in self-education/self-learning. But people tell me in higher education you also have to go to class otherwise you can never pass/succeed.
I hope this isn't true!


Definitely check with the disabilities office before enrolling to talk to someone to see if what you need is offered/available/likely to be provided.

Second, bullying is less in college.

Third, try try try to go to class. It gives a good impression of you and causes professors to be nicer, also go to office hours occasionally.


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perpetual_padawan
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25 May 2014, 11:36 pm

paxfilosoof wrote:
NicholasName wrote:
I'm going to be an engineer! I found a university with a really, really good disability program, and if I can get in, it should be much easier than the nightmare that was my previous schooling. I've never had problems with studying (I've actually never needed to study much...), but I had HORRIBLE problems with homework.

I recommend either starting at a community college or finding a "regular" college/university with a really good disability program. Before even thinking about applying anywhere, contact their disability services office and make sure they can give you the accommodations you need. If they can't, run for the hills! Er, I mean, find somewhere else.

I also cannot recommend occupational therapy enough. It might be hard to find someone who treats adults, though. If you have a hard time, start contacting the occupational therapy departments at big hospitals and universities; that's how I found mine. A good OT can help you with all kinds of sensory and self-regulation things.

Good luck!


I also want to be an engineer, but I worry a little about the classes. In school I always had difficulties because of bullying/and I can't follow easily what the teacher in the class says. I'm better in self-education/self-learning. But people tell me in higher education you also have to go to class otherwise you can never pass/succeed.
I hope this isn't true!


Attwood has a section in his book about creating a conducive classroom environment for Aspies. I recommend checking it out. Some things are completely in your control. When I first started university out of high school, I did miserably. I ended up failing out and completely demoralized. I went back to school in 2009, and a few things really helped me out (many are on Attwood's list).

1) I joined the school's honors society. It makes a huge difference being in classes with people that want to be there, and they also want to excel.
2) Sit in the front row, preferably as close to the teacher as possible. That way, you can focus on the teacher and not have the distractions that can potentially be bombarding you in the classroom.
3) Ask for permission first, since lectures are considered copyrighted (at least in the USA), and record the lectures and listen to them again as many times as you need to.
4) I found this really important--prepare for each class. Read the chapters that will be lectured on that day, so you already have an idea what will be discussed. I thrived on the images in the book (I am purely a visual thinker) and I was able to make connections with what I saw and heard.
5) Ask questions. The teacher is there for you. Make time to visit them in their office. It's really intimidating at first, but it makes sense to go see them, as it has been statistically proven that it raises your letter grade by the end of the semester on that alone.
6) Stay organized. I had to force myself to do this, but it makes a big difference when you can find what you need to without too much effort. Subject dividers and three hole punchers became really good friends.
7) Believe in yourself! School is difficult for anyone, but especially for us since we get sensory overloaded. That being said, staying positive makes a big difference. Success breed success. I never would have graduated with honors, with a 3.96 GPA if I hadn't have gotten a 99% on my first class back to college. As soon as I discovered I could succeed in school, the rest was just procedural.

I hope this helps.


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Last edited by perpetual_padawan on 26 May 2014, 8:40 am, edited 2 times in total.

iquemo
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26 May 2014, 7:00 am

paxfilosoof wrote:
iquemo wrote:
Yes, it's not just possible, it's a reality in my case :D

I'm a mechanical engineer, graduated in 2007 and since then I'm working in the area. I find some of Asperger's traits (mostly attention to details, logical thinking and focus) are very worthy in this carreer. Of course, the human interaction thing still exists (you might endure several meetings during a single workday, sometimes it triggers meltdowns), but you are valued more by the data provided and calculations done than by what you say or look like...


Cool, can I talk to you or ask some questions?
I'm really interested in engineering and this connected with autism/asperger. :)

Thanks!


Sure, anytime :D



iquemo
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26 May 2014, 7:15 am

perpetual_padawan wrote:
paxfilosoof wrote:
NicholasName wrote:
I'm going to be an engineer! I found a university with a really, really good disability program, and if I can get in, it should be much easier than the nightmare that was my previous schooling. I've never had problems with studying (I've actually never needed to study much...), but I had HORRIBLE problems with homework.

I recommend either starting at a community college or finding a "regular" college/university with a really good disability program. Before even thinking about applying anywhere, contact their disability services office and make sure they can give you the accommodations you need. If they can't, run for the hills! Er, I mean, find somewhere else.

I also cannot recommend occupational therapy enough. It might be hard to find someone who treats adults, though. If you have a hard time, start contacting the occupational therapy departments at big hospitals and universities; that's how I found mine. A good OT can help you with all kinds of sensory and self-regulation things.

Good luck!


I also want to be an engineer, but I worry a little about the classes. In school I always had difficulties because of bullying/and I can't follow easily what the teacher in the class says. I'm better in self-education/self-learning. But people tell me in higher education you also have to go to class otherwise you can never pass/succeed.
I hope this isn't true!


Attwood has a section in his book about creating a conducive classroom environment for Aspies. I recommend checking it out. Some things are completely in your control. When I first started university out of high school, I did miserably. I ended up failing out and completely demoralized. I went back to school in 2009, and a few things really helped me out (many are on Attwood's list).

1) I joined the schoo's honors society. It makes a huge difference being in classes with people that want to be there, and they also want to excel.
2) Sit in the front row, preferably as close to the teacher as possible. That way, you can focus on the teacher and not have the distractions that can potentially be bombarding you in the classroom.
3) Ask for permission first, since lectures are considered copyrighted (at least in the USA), and record the lectures and listen to them again as many times as you need to.
4) I found this really important--prepare for each class. Read the chapters that will be lectured on that day, so you already have an idea what will be discussed. I thrived on the images in the book (I am purely a visual thinker) and I was able to make connections with what I saw and heard.
5) Ask questions. The teacher is there for you. Make time to visit them in their office. It's really intimidating at first, but it makes sense to go see them, as it has been statistically proven that it raises your letter grade by the end of the semester on that alone.
6) Stay organized. I had to force myself to do this, but it makes a big difference when you can find what you need to without too much effort. Subject dividers and three hole punchers became really good friends.
7) Believe in yourself! School is difficult for anyone, but especially for us sense we get sensory overloaded. That being said, staying positive makes a big difference. Success breed success. I never would have graduated with honors, with a 3.96 GPA if I hadn't have gotten a 99% on my first class back to college. As soon as I discovered I could succeed in school, the rest was just procedural.

I hope this helps.


These tips are great! I remember myself taking part in my college's SAE Aerodesign team, as I am a huge enthusiast of airplane design (long hours of pure joy designing those little model airplanes, books on aerodynamics opened all over the table, it was like heaven... people who love the same subject than you are much more amiable and tends to bypass some things they find odd in you) Tip #2 is great also, always did this (since the dawn of time :lol: ), it helps a lot. But be aware that sometimes this didn't prevents overload issues (I can't remember how many times I simply slept over the school desk after just 5-10 minutes of class).



TheConfuzzledAspie
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26 May 2014, 5:39 pm

ZombieBrideXD wrote:
i cant study to save my life, its boring and requires too much focus, and i retain most lessons on my own, i dont need to study.


Goddammit, ain't that the truth? I just can't seem to get commited enough in school, and I have always thought aspies were really good at school,but I guess some aren't. :\



paxfilosoof
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27 May 2014, 2:20 am

iquemo wrote:
paxfilosoof wrote:
iquemo wrote:
Yes, it's not just possible, it's a reality in my case :D

I'm a mechanical engineer, graduated in 2007 and since then I'm working in the area. I find some of Asperger's traits (mostly attention to details, logical thinking and focus) are very worthy in this carreer. Of course, the human interaction thing still exists (you might endure several meetings during a single workday, sometimes it triggers meltdowns), but you are valued more by the data provided and calculations done than by what you say or look like...


Cool, can I talk to you or ask some questions?
I'm really interested in engineering and this connected with autism/asperger. :)

Thanks!


Sure, anytime :D


Cool, how do you want to communicate? what do you think is the easiest way to talk?



AutumnSylver
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27 May 2014, 3:20 am

I'm in a program in college in the engineering field - Industrial microbiology. It's mostly microbiology with a little bit of messing with organisms' DNA thrown in. (ie. recombinant DNA technology. This is how synthetic insulin was created. One of my teachers said that later in the program, we'll be inserting DNA into bacteria to make them glow in the dark. I'm really looking forward to that :D ). I took a couple of college programs in the past that involved microbiology. It was my favourite part of the programs and I found myself looking for jobs in the field of microbiology more than what either of the fields of study actually were, but I didn't have the qualifications for it, so I decided to focus on microbiology. I'm in a 3 year college program, and after that, I can take one year in university and get a bachelor's degree.

I find that if it's something I'm really interested in, I have no problem throwing myself into studying and learning a lot about the subject. I love lab work, and I've done it twice before (both of the programs I took in the past were lab programs), so that part is easy for me. When I'm interested in something, I can spend hours researching it on the internet, so it's the same idea. I have no problem studying for hours when it's something I'm really interested in.

As long as what you're studying is something you're already interested in, you shouldn't have much of a problem.


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Your neurotypical (non-autistic) score: 63 of 200
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Andrejake
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27 May 2014, 7:23 am

I don't understand if you're worried about the content that you'll have to study or about the university and the involved social content.
I'm finishing my Fifth period as a civil engineer this month and i can say that it's totally possible, it depends mostly on you.
The university itself it's a place that i don't like too much. I feel reeeeeally unconfortable from the moment i pass the main gate, mainly because of the noises and the amount of people there.
But once i'm inside the classroom, almost everything gets fine and i can concentrate on the lessons. Since i have a preferred place to sit i alywas try to get on class before the others so no one sits on my place haha.
There are hard times, like when i need to present something in front of the class (actually in the last one i just got so nervous that i stopped talking in the middle of the apresentation, jumped directly to the conclusion and because of that i received a really bad note), but since most of the time my skills are tested through exams it's actually fine to compensate what i lost on the "interactive stuff".
I don't know if your life gets easier if you're actually registered as an Aspie, since i'm not because of my late diagnosis, but even if you don't you just have to want enough and give it your best and you can surely make it through.
Oh, and if you're worried about the content that you'll have to study... It helps, of course, if you have some kind of sympathy with math lol



paxfilosoof
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27 May 2014, 8:46 am

Andrejake wrote:
I don't understand if you're worried about the content that you'll have to study or about the university and the involved social content.
I'm finishing my Fifth period as a civil engineer this month and i can say that it's totally possible, it depends mostly on you.
The university itself it's a place that i don't like too much. I feel reeeeeally unconfortable from the moment i pass the main gate, mainly because of the noises and the amount of people there.
But once i'm inside the classroom, almost everything gets fine and i can concentrate on the lessons. Since i have a preferred place to sit i alywas try to get on class before the others so no one sits on my place haha.
There are hard times, like when i need to present something in front of the class (actually in the last one i just got so nervous that i stopped talking in the middle of the apresentation, jumped directly to the conclusion and because of that i received a really bad note), but since most of the time my skills are tested through exams it's actually fine to compensate what i lost on the "interactive stuff".
I don't know if your life gets easier if you're actually registered as an Aspie, since i'm not because of my late diagnosis, but even if you don't you just have to want enough and give it your best and you can surely make it through.
Oh, and if you're worried about the content that you'll have to study... It helps, of course, if you have some kind of sympathy with math lol


I don't think the math will be a problem, I think my concentration will. I never succeed in environments with a lot of noise :/



Andrejake
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27 May 2014, 10:16 am

paxfilosoof wrote:
I don't think the math will be a problem, I think my concentration will. I never succeed in environments with a lot of noise :/


Well, at least during the lessons, you probably will not have problems with noise since people will be quiet paying atention.
When i said that i dislike the noise i was actually talking about the noise out of the classroom during the interval between classes and before/after them where people unite to chat and i usually don't even leave the place that i am because i can't stand between that amount of people talking all at the same time.
I don't think it will be too problematic to your concentration (as i said, at least not during the lessons).