[NABS-L] non-traditional students and the the role that nabs can play

[Ben Fulton]

Hi Carlos,

I would say some of the skills you will need will be in self advocacy. I found going to school that had a substantial amount of online content I had to work with I.T. and administration a lot. In the first semester the recorded lectures were posted on an online platform where the play buttons had to be clicked by a mouse, I learned a bit about virtualizing the jaws cursor, but in the end I had to lobby the administration to change how the recorded lectures were delivered. I actually formed a student organization to this end, and the organization continues to advocate for students requiring accommodations for all students. Although originally focused solely on issues for blind or visually impaired students, we found that having a broader focus increased student participation and made our voice stronger, although we were initially concerned about diluting our message.

I would also say technology and grants will be your best friend. Use as much available funding for technology as possible. A high tech braille output device, like braille note would be good. Also, software and training, get the latest version of JAWS with a license agreement for updates if possible. I also found Kurzwell was an excellent program, the OCR is better than JAWS or Adobe acrobat. In some cases I was able to figure out jpgs and gif files where events were being advertised on posters. I also found training to be essential. If you can get funding for training I would recommend it. Make a list of the skills you think you may need, and work on developing those skills.

Some things will come as a result of doing them. I had to learn how to use power point, because a lot of presentations were done with power point. 

Also, find out what platform the school uses and arrange tutorials in advance of classes. My school was using Moodle, but I have heard of others like blackboard. The programs do work differently, and I find it takes me a while to learn the new system, you may not want to be dealing with that at the same time as classes and other challenges with a new school.

I also went to school a month before classes started to get a physical orientation to the campus. I found going there with a qualified O&M instructor really helped. Depending on size and complexity you might need a few days of orientation. 

Also, contact your professors as early as possible. I found that I had to find out what textbooks were required and then work with the library to transcribe them into digital formats. Depending on the text, this could take a few weeks. So starting at least a month in advance of classes is a good idea. 

If you can work and go to school it is a great way to avoid excessive amounts of debt. It really depends on your program and financial position. Working and going to school can be difficult, and depending on your program not possible, or the program might take longer to finish. It's a personal choice. If you feel grades would suffer, it might be better to focus on school, but I find that staying busy on projects outside of scool actually increases school performance. 

I think NABS is a great place to get information about many aspects of life as a blind student.

All the best,
Ben

> Good evening to you all on the list. My name is Carlos Montas and I wanted to post  a question about career transitions and going back to school as an older student.   I would like to know what do you all think are the keys to being a successful student in todays environment?  I would like to know about the keys to being successful going to school on line? I would also like to know if you had to choose would you continue to work and go to school, or would focus on school full time? 
> In my situation I am wanting to go back to school to get my  my masster's in Public Adminestration. My career has focused on working  in the field of vocational rehabilatation.   My idea is to work on more systemic issues in the public policy in the areas of improving the over all vocational rehabilatation system.  
> 
> Finally  how can nabs help the non-traditional student?  
> Sincerely,  
> Carlos Montas