Tips on being in college and having Crohn's

[Tyler M]

This year I'm going to be a freshman in college. I need some advice and tips on having Crohn's in college. I'm going to be living in a dorm with a roommate and what do I do about my professors and missing class. Please help so clueless on all of this ???

 

[nogutsnoglory]

I think you should definitely get in touch with disability services and let them know about your condition. I think it's also important to let your professors know during the first or second class at the beginning of the semester that you have a chronic condition and may need special accommodations ie: more excuses absences, bathroom leaves and test taking accommodations.

In my experience I felt that I was treated very fairly and professors really went out of their way to make sure that I was able to complete my courses without any undue impact on my disease.

 

[xmdmom]

My son registered with disability. He needed to provide a letter from his doctor saying he had Crohn's and what accomodations he would need. He got a single room and a letter to give to the professors letting them know that he might need to get up during class, and also asking professor to make allowances (e.g. extend deadlines) if he is feeling ill. My son didn't need to say anything to the professors.

 

[AlexJ]

I have just finished my first year of university after taking a gap year because of crohn's. I first applied for disabled student allowance and went to have an assessment and was given money towards an en-suite room (saved my bacon on many occasions :tongue: ) and also was given my own private room with bathroom access for exams. Lecturers were extremely understanding and made it very easy for me to catch up with any missed work by sending me material over email. University doesn't work the same as school, attendance isn't so tightly regulated and it's not as much of a big deal to miss a lecture because you can easily catch up

The most important thing is not to worry too much and to let your professors know what's going on. If your university has personal tutors then s/he should be the first person to know because they can help you out with any problems and can contact other professors on your behalf if needed :smile: