Ministry of Advanced Education

Programs and Services for Students with Disabilities

Programs

Adult special education programs are available to people with permanent disabilities or combinations of learning difficulties that hinder their success in regular post-secondary programs. These programs, which vary from institution to institution, include:

• employment preparation
• vocational skills training
• academic skills development
• personal success skills development

For a general idea of what is available at each institution, click on its link. For more detail and a comprehensive list, call or e-mail the contact person, or check out the institution's calendar, most of which are available online.

Services

Public post-secondary institutions in British Columbia are always evaluating and upgrading the services they offer to students with disabilities. Although the level and type of service can vary from one institution to another, the following services are generally available at most public post-secondary institutions:

Transition services including:

• visits with students in secondary schools and other settings
• orientation to campus
• liaison between students and instructors
• exit planning

Support services including:

• readers
• note-takers
• tutors
• interpreters
• personal, educational and career counselling
• exam adaptation
• preferred parking

Special equipment and resources including:

• CCTV
• taped books
• some large print books
• computers with screen readers and large print systems
• tape recorders
• TTY/TDD
• referrals to Assistive Technology BC

In addition to the above list, institutions offer other specialized services. For a general idea of what is available at each institution, click on its link. For more detail and a comprehensive list, call or e-mail the contact person, or check out the institution's calendar. Most are available online.

Students with disabilities should contact disability services personnel four to six months before starting classes to make sure there is time for support services to be arranged.

Funding sources

Canada Study Grant for the Accommodation of Students with Permanent Disabilities (CSG-PD)

This program helps students overcome educational barriers due to their permanent disability. Students may be eligible to receive a non-repayable federal grant to buy adaptive equipment and support services to help them access public or private post-secondary institutions.

If the following services are not provided by your school, CSG-PD funding can be used for:

• sign language interpretation
• tutors (specialized tutors only)
• note-takers
• readers
• attendant care for studies (while at school)
• specialized transportation to and from institution only (must be ministry-approved)
• alternative formats (e.g. large or Braille print)
• technical or recording equipment, including Braille, talking calculator and tape recorders
• computers and other technical aids
• 75 per cent of the cost of a learning disability assessment up to $1,200 (if the assessment meets ministry criteria).

CSG funding cannot be used for:

• living expenses
• tuition and books
• vehicle modifications, alterations for educational institutions or residences
• a replacement of institutional funds, if institutional funds are available.

Adult Basic Education Student Assistance Program (ABESAP)

This B.C. government program provides grants to adult basic education students who can demonstrate financial need. It is designed to cover direct educational costs (tuition, books and supplies, and – in some cases – transportation) for students enrolled in programs like:

• academic upgrading
• pre-vocational
• English language training
• adult special education

Contact the financial aid office at any public post-secondary school to apply for funding through this program. More detail is available in the program manual [PDF 197kb] on the Studentaid BC website.

Assistance Program for Students with Permanent Disabilities (APSD)

The Province provides grants up to $10,000 to students with disabilities to buy goods and services that will help them access post-secondary education. Students needing attendant care services may receive grants up to $12,000. Grants cannot be used to pay for tuition or books. Students must have exhausted other funding options before applying for this program.

Employment Program for Persons with Disabilities (EPPD)

This program provides assessments and planning, employment-related training, work placement, employment crisis services, assistive technology and disability supports for people whose disabilities are barriers to employment. Included are aids for hearing, seeing, mobility or agility; adaptations to computer hardware; and software. The program also includes a self-employment component to help people establish and operate their own businesses. For more information about the program, please go to the Employment Program for Persons with Disabilities website.

For more information about student funding and for application forms, please go to our Studentaid BC website.

Assistive Technology BC

Assistive Technology BC provides technology support to reduce barriers encountered by students with disabilities as they work towards their educational and employment goals.

Through this program, adults with disabilities who are post-secondary students, or who are clients of the Employment Program for Persons with Disabilities, are eligible for special technology support services. These include assessment, consultation, loan of adaptive technology, and training on the use of technology. The goal is to facilitate independence with reading, writing, and communication at work and at school.

AT-BC provides services to persons with disabilities under three programs:

1. The Employment Program for Persons with Disabilities, under the Ministry of Social Development, loans adaptive technology to people with disabilities who have been approved for services under the Employment Program for Persons with Disabilities. This equipment helps adults with disabilities to prepare for and obtain employment.

2. Students who demonstrate financial need through the B.C. student loan process are eligible to receive funding through the Canada Student Grant for Services and Equipment for Persons with Permanent Disabilities, a federal program managed by the Ministry of Science and Universities. This program helps students in diploma or degree programs overcome barriers to meeting their educational goals.

3. Public post-secondary institutions are also eligible for loans of equipment to increase on-site access for students with disabilities through PILAT (Programs for Institutional Loans of Adaptive Technology) through the Ministry of Science and Universities. Equipment is loaned when buying it would be onerous because few students need it, or when the institution is planning on purchasing the technology and needs the equipment while waiting for the order to arrive.

Criteria

• The person has a verifiable permanent physical disability and/or sensory impairment that significantly interferes with access to post-secondary education or employment.
• The physical disability or sensory impairment is the primary factor preventing the person from meeting educational/vocational goals.
• The person is:
• enrolled or is in the process of enrolling in at least two credit courses* in each of two semesters of an academic year in a post-secondary institution, or
• is seeking training or employment support through the Employment Program for Persons with Disabilities.
• The person needs adaptive technology to eliminate barriers caused by the disability.
• The referring agency can demonstrate that it has developed and is implementing an educational/vocational plan with the person, which includes strategies for addressing needs arising from the disability.
• The referring agency can demonstrate that it is using its own resources and community supports in implementing the applicant's educational/vocational plan.
• The referring agency agrees to work with program staff in incorporating technical and/or non-technical accommodations into the educational/vocational plan.

*Exceptions may be considered. Requests must be accompanied with appropriate rationale.

Contact Person:

Vince Tomassetti, Project Manager
Address: 108-1750 West 75th Ave.
Vancouver BC V6P 6G2
Phone: (604) 264-8295
Fax: (604) 263-2267
E-mail: info@at-bc.ca
Website: http://www.at-bc.ca

Institutions

Visit the following websites for more information on programs and services offered at public post-secondary institutions in B.C.

• British Columbia Institute of Technology - Disability Resource Center
• Camosun College - Disability Resource Center
• Capilano University - Disability Services
• College of New Caledonia - Disability Support Services
• College of the Rockies - Disability Services
• Douglas College - Centre for Students with Disabilities
• Emily Carr University of Art and Design - Disability Services
• Justice Institute of British Columbia - Disability Services
• Kwantlen Polytechnic University - Access Programs for People With Disabilities | Services for Students with Disabilities
• Langara College - Disability Services
• North Island College - Access for Students with Disabilities Services
• Northern Lights College - Access Services
• Northwest Community College - Accessibility Support Services
• Okanagan College - Disability Services | Adult Special Education
• Selkirk College - Disability Services | Adult Basic Education
• Simon Fraser University - Centre for Students with Disabilities
• Thompson Rivers University - Services for Students with Disabilities
• Thompson Rivers University Open Learning - Disability Services
• University of the Fraser Valley - Disability Resource Centre
• University of British Columbia - Disability Services
• University of Northern British Columbia - Disability Services
• University of Victoria - Resource Centre for Students with a Disability
• Vancouver Community College - Disability Services
• Vancouver Island University - Disability Services

Table of Acronyms

ABE	Adult Basic Education
ABESAP	Adult Basic Education Student Assistance Program
APSD	Assistance Program for Students with Permanent Disabilities
ASE	Adult Special Education
ASL	American Sign Language
AT-BC	Assistive Technology BC
BOE	Basic Occupational Education Program
CSG-PD	Canada Study Grant for the Accommodation of Students with Permanent Disabilities
DRC	Disability Resource Centre
EA	Electronic and General Assembl
FS	Food Services
IEP	Individual Education Plan
IEPA	Individualized Education Program for Adults
OC	Okanagan College
PACE	Preparing for Access to Careers and Education
PSCAS	Post-Secondary Communication Access Services
RB	Retail and Business Services
SAME	Supported Access to Modified Education
TAB	Training Assistance Benefits Program
TARGET	Techniques for Access, Reaching Goals and Employment Training
TDD	Telecommunication Devices for the Deaf
TSSP	Technology and Services Support Program
UBC	University of British Columbia
VRS	Vocational Rehabilitation Services
WRT	Work Readiness Training
WST	Workplace Skills Training