Graduate Certificate in Disability Services

• Curriculum
• Learning Goals and Objectives

Curriculum

Certificate Requirements: 4 courses, 12 credits

Core Requirements (2 courses, 6 credits)

DSHE-710	Introduction to Disability Services in Higher Education	3
DSHE-720	Disability, Documentation, and Reasonable Accommodations	3

Elective (1 course, 3 credits)

Choose one of the following:

DSHE-730	Assistive Tech, Emerging Tech, and Web Access for Disability	3
DSHE-740	High School and Career Transition Planning for Students With Disabilities	3

Practicum (1 course, 3 credits)

DSHE-745

Practicum in Disability Services Administration

3

Students enrolled in the Disability Services in Higher Education certificate program must complete a practicum experience that will connect course work with practical experience. The practicum experience consists of one 3-credit course with 150 total work hours in the field. Students typically spend 10 hours per week working at a local college or university in their disability services office. Students formally apply for the practicum experience and consult with their advisor regarding field placement. The supervision component of the course will be taught online.

Learning Goals and Objectives

Learning goals and objectives reflect the educational outcomes achieved by students through the completion of this program.

Learning Goals	Learning Objectives
Students will...	Students will be able to...
Gain a historical perspective and understand the legal framework for working with students with disabilities in higher education	- Understand the emergence of Disability Services as a distinct field in Higher Education - Educate the campus community on the role, responsibility, and ethics of disability services
Gain working knowledge of accessibility, accommodations, and the provision of auxiliary aids and services as well as the identification of resources and the development of policy and implementation protocol	- Understand best practices for the development of disability services policies - Research and benchmark in the development of policy - Incorporate important compliance issues in policies and procedures
Understand rights and responsibilities of students, family members, and university faculty, staff, and administration	- Assign rights and responsibilities to students, faculty, and staff - Educate students with disabilities on rights and responsibilities - Educate faculty, staff, and students on rights and responsibilities - Address discrepancies in the application of rights and responsibilities
Acquire case management skills relevant to developing and implementing intake practices, advising and advocacy, and the provision of management of accommodation services	- Develop intake interview procedures - Practice formulating and implementing interview questions that effectively capture a student’s self-report - Identify and isolate major life impacts and match appropriate accommodations
Understand disability as diversity with respect to student identity development	- Understand transience and intersectionality of an individual’s disability - Develop advising skills for interacting with students at various points of the identity development spectrum