Eligibility Guidelines

According to rehabilitation legislation, a person with a disability is "an individual with a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, has a record of an impairment, or is regarded as having an impairment."  Some examples of disabling conditions may include, but are not limited to:

  • Attention Deficit Disorder
  • Autism Disorders
  • Hearing Impairments
  • Learning Disabilities
  • Mobility impairments
  • Neurological Impairments
  • Physical Health Impairments
  • Psychological Impairments
  • Visual Impairments

Eligibility For Services

Students must self-disclose the need for academic adjustments, auxiliary aids, and/or services to the Office for Student Disability Resources.

In order for a student’s impairment to be considered a disability, the student must demonstrate through documentation that the impairment meets the definition of a disability under The Americans with Disabilities Amendments Act (ADAAA) of 2008 and/or Section 504 of The Rehabilitation Act of 1973.  Under the ADAAA and Section 504, a person has a disability if he/she has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities such as performing manual tasks, walking, standing, seeing, speaking, hearing, sleeping, learning, reading, concentrating, thinking, communicating, and working.   

Documentation

All documentation must describe the history and functional limitations of the student’s impairments.
All documentation must adequately verify the nature and extent of the disorder in accordance with current professional standards, techniques and practices.
All documentation must clearly substantiate the reasons for the student’s specific academic adjustment, aid, and /or service request.
The cost of obtaining documentation is borne by the student.

If the initial documentation is incomplete or inadequate to determine the extent of the disability and reasonable services, PSU has the discretion to require additional documentation.

For a fuller explanation of the documentation required to verify a disability, please review Documentation Guidelines.