[Ncabs] question about NC grad schools

[Cindy Bennett]

Hi Shickeytha,

I grew up in Asheville, graduated from UNC Wilmington and now live on
the west coast in Seattle.

I personally had a great experience at UNCW! The disabilities office
was great although I feel that I did not need a lot of accommodations,
so my experiences with them were pretty minimal. They scanned my books
and provided a reader for math-related classes which was super nice.
They even allowed me to choose my reader and bring them in to fill out
paperwork so they could get paid. I had a few old-timey professors who
insisted that I take tests in the disabilities office. I prefer to
take my tests with the students so I can ask questions of the
professor if I need to, but I picked my battles and did not argue too
much, because in these particular classes, the tests were rather
straight-forward. I did take tests separately for math-related classes
when I needed to use my reader. However, if that is an accommodation,
the office will work with you. Overwhelmingly however, my professors
were willing to work with me directly and we did not typically need to
involve the disabilities office.

When you sign up, you will see a list of accommodations. I would just
check all of them even if you do not plan to use one. For example, I
didn't think I would need a reader, but the process of getting one was
so much more seamless because I had checked it off from the beginning.

I will say all of this with the disclaimer that I have not been to
UNCW since 2011 so staff may have changed, but I hope that they still
exhibit the positive and not overbearing qualities that I enjoyed as a
student.

The campus itself is beautiful and walkable. However, the bus system
really sucks. I did not have a lot of independent travel experiences
when I went to UNCW and was ok with getting rides and such. But now
that I have had blindness training, I wouldn't give up the big city if
someone paid me. So if public transit is super important to you,
especially if you will have a lot of practica, you might want to think
twice about UNCW.

There is a DSB office in the area, and you can get some O&M on campus
before if you would like. However, you probably know from your
undergrad experience that you will ultimately just have to get out
there and explore, because O&M can't teach you everything. I do not
think the campus is overly confusing by any means. From my experience,
everything was accessible. When I moved into my freshman dorm and
asked for braille signs, they installed them immediately. So if there
is a need like that that arises, the university seems to consider
improvements.

Grad students can live on campus, but as of last time I checked, there
is no dedicated grad housing. there are apartment complexes in walking
distance from the university. Unfortunately, many of the streets with
shopping centers near UNCW are not very walkable.

I am not familiar with being a grad student as I am applying to grad
school myself, but I know that the grad programs tend to be well
acclaimed, not quite as hard to get into as some other universities,
and that the community of professors and students is still small and
intimate.

I am most familiar with the psychology department and have maintained
contacts. If you are pursuing one of the masters programs in
psychology, then feel free to email me offlist with your interests,
and I will be happy to introduce you to faculty that I know if they
fit with your interests. They just got a great new building, and when
I was an undergrad research assistant, I worked on a cohesive team
that respected my strengths; blindness was never a big deal.

And best of all, it is near the beach!

HTH!

Cindy

On 10/28/13, D Minter <cmin79 at gmail.com> wrote:
> I would love to hear these responses also.
>
> Sent from my iPad
>
>> On Oct 28, 2013, at 11:31 AM, Shickeytha Chandler <shickeytha at gmail.com>
>> wrote:
>>
>> Hello all,
>>
>> I live in the western part of the state and received my undergraduate
>> degree several years ago. I am now looking at a few graduate programs
>> and would like to see if any of you can give feedback about any of the
>> following schools: UNC Wilmington, NC State University, and UNC
>> Greensboro. I know that having a strong Disability Services office and
>> a campus culture that is open to people who are blind can make life so
>> much more pleasant when one is trying to focus on studies and does not
>> need distractions such as worrying about getting appropriate
>> accommodations, etc. And I am sure that will be even more important at
>> the graduate level. So do any of you have any experience at any of
>> these schools? Also, I would be open to any insight any of you have
>> about being a blind grad student in general. Thanks in advance!
>>
>> Shickeytha
>>
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-- 
Cindy Bennett
Secretary: National Association of Blind Students

B.A. Psychology, UNC Wilmington
clb5590 at gmail.com