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Disabilities
The mission of the office of Services for Students with Disabilities is to support the educational, career, social, and recreational choices
of SMU students with documented disabilities through coordination of services and reasonable accommodations. In keeping with the Americans
with Disabilities Act of 1990 and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, individuals with disabilities may not be subjected to
discrimination. The purpose of reasonable accommodations is to assure that these students have access to SMU programs and services and
to the opportunity to succeed academically equal to that of students without disabilities. Academic accommodations do not guarantee that
students will be academically successful, and they are not provided simply because a person has a disability. Rather, they are provided
only if not having the accommodations would result in discrimination.
It is the responsibility of the students themselves to establish eligibility for services or accommodations through the office of
Services for Students with Disabilities. Students who would like to be considered for services through this office (1) must
submit appropriate, current documentation, and (2) must request services themselves, by phone or letter. In their requests,
students should indicate what assistance is being sought, and provide information on how to be contacted after the documentation
is reviewed. Documentation will not be reviewed without the students’ making such a request.
Documentation of a disability needs time to be reviewed to determine eligibility, so it is important to submit documentation
early. The University’s guidelines for documentation may be found at
the office of Services for Students with Disabilities's website, http://www.smu.edu/studentlife/OSSD_Facts.asp.
NOTE: Since submitting documentation to admissions is not considered a request for services and does not ensure that the
documentation is forwarded to this office, be sure to submit documentation directly to this office. Please allow two weeks for
review of documentation before inquiring about eligibility for services.