Frequently Asked Questions
Our AccessAbility Services Team are happy to meet with prospective students to provide guidance about planning their journey into university.
Please call us on 1800 246 446 or email accessability@jcu.edu.au
Parents and guardians are welcome to contact us to obtain general information about possible supports and services available that may assist students who study at ÐÄÌøÖ±²¥.
ÐÄÌøÖ±²¥ is an adult learning environment and privacy laws do not allow us to speak with parents, guardians or other family members about a student without the student’s written permission. We encourage you to make a plan with the student about how they can begin or continue to take on increased responsibility for their studies.
We understand that you may not identify your condition as a 'disability'. However, if your health condition is impacting in any way on your studies, even if temporarily, we are here to help.
We recommend it is better to have something in place early rather than wait until it gets closer to an exam for example.
Yes, AccessAbility is a free and confidential service.
AccessAbility can not disclose the information you provide without your permission unless the law requires us to or there are compelling reasons such as significant risk to yourself or someone else.
You will complete a Consent to Release form as part of your registration to determine the level of disclosure you are comfortable with to other ÐÄÌøÖ±²¥ staff. Please note the level of disclosure may prevent us from requesting or implementing some adjustments.
If you have further questions about confidentially, please discuss with your Advisor.
The earlier the better.
You can contact AccessAbility at any point during your studies, however it is important to understand that the earlier you contact AccessAbility, the easier it will be to implement your adjustments and alleviate any stress that may be caused by tight deadlines.
- Obtain documentation
You need to provide documentation from your treating health professional. The documentation should be current, state the nature and duration of your condition, any treatment you are receiving, and the impact the disability or circumstances are having on your studies and exams. The Health Professional Report may assist you in obtaining the necessary evidence about your disability or medical condition from your health professional if you do not have current, sufficient documentation. Information on appropriate medical documentation requirements can be found within the Health Professional Report form.
- Register with AccessAbility and book an appointment with AccessAbility through the following link . Once your request is received, we will be in contact to organise an appointment or request any outstanding information
- Complete a Consent to Release Form - you can complete this prior to or during your first appointment with an Advisor, should you have any queries about disclosure of your condition/disability
- Be enrolled in at least one subject or completing the last requirements of your degree (i.e., placement, thesis submission or finalising exams) and have checked your subject outline for assessment types, submission dates and examinations.
- While having your enrolment finalised is not essential at this stage, it helps expedite the process if you are enrolled in your degree and subjects.
- Update your details on eStudent using the instructions guide.
AccessAbility Services staff will guide you through the remainder of the registration process during your first appointment.
If you have difficulties with any of these steps, please call us on 1800 246 446 or email accessability@jcu.edu.au and we can assist you.
Documentation from your treating health professional is required and should be current, state the nature and duration of your condition, any treatment you are receiving, and the impact the disability or circumstances are having on your studies and exams.
Information on appropriate medical documentation requirements can be found within the Health Professional Report form.
You also need to complete a Consent to Release Form. This can be done prior to or during your first appointment with an Advisor, should you have any queries about disclosure of your condition/disability.
AccessAbility has a variety of services and facilities available to support you during your studies, including:
- Access Plans: an Access Plan is a document produced by the disability practitioner in consultation with you. The plan will detail the reasonable adjustments required for your studies based on information provided by yourself and a report from your health practitioner.
- Reasonable Adjustments: assist students with disability, injury or health condition to participate in education and training on the same basis as other students.
- Self-help resources: to assist you to build skills and strategies to manage your disability or health condition in a university environment.
- Access to on-campus Assistive Technology rooms
- Access to assistive technology and software
- Alternative formatting
- Use of mobility aids and assistive equipment
- Alternative assessment
- Examination adjustments
- Navigating the campus
- General advice and support
If you are a ÐÄÌøÖ±²¥ student and registering with AccessAbility Services for the first time please visit .
If you are already registered with AccessAbility Services and want to submit a request for a change to your Access Plan please click to log into the Access Student Portal
If you are already registered with AccessAbility Services and want to access or review the supports you currently have in place, use the options in the menu on the left once you log into the Access Student Portal
If you have any difficulties please call email accessability@jcu.edu.au and we can assist you.
Appointments with AccessAbility Advisors are available:
- Monday to Friday
- By phone, Face to Face or online (Zoom or teams chat)
Up to 30 minutes... |
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Up to 60 minutes... |
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- If you are a ÐÄÌøÖ±²¥ student and registering with AccessAbility Services for the first time please visit .
- If you are already registered with AccessAbility Services and want to submit a request for a change to your Access Plan, please click to log into the Access Student Portal.
- If you are already registered with AccessAbility Services and want to access or review the supports you currently have in place, use the options in the menu on the left once you log into the Access Student Portal
- Appointment confirmation and reminders: you will receive an email to your ÐÄÌøÖ±²¥ email when an appointment is booked confirming the appointment (phone, zoom or face-to-face). You will also receive a reminder two days prior to your appointment.
- If you have any difficulties, please email accessability@jcu.edu.au and we can assist you.
If you are no longer able to attend your appointment please log into the to reschedule or contact AccessAbility. Email: accessability@jcu.edu.au
Please let the AccessAbility team know as soon as possible if you need to cancel or reschedule your appointment. If you fail to attend, it is likely that you have denied another student the opportunity to see an Advisor.
Your AccessPlan lists any Reasonable Adjustments that have been recommended.
These may include, but are not limited to:
- Access to assistive software/equipment e.g., text-to-speech-to-text, screen reader, mobility aids
- Alternative exam adjustments - e.g., changes to the environment, duration, or other exam conditions, to enable you to sit your scheduled exam.
- Extensions - short extension on individual assignments
- Access to alternate formatting
Note: you will still need to meet any mandatory or compulsory attendance requirement, and/or hurdle requirements for all courses
Under the , ÐÄÌøÖ±²¥ recognises that a disability may be permanent or temporary and may include the following forms:
- Physical disability
- Mental Health
- Blind and vision impaired, deaf and hard of hearing
- Specific Learning Disability
- intellectual Disability
- ADHD
- Autism
- Health and medical condition (eg heart disease, chronic fatigue syndrome)
- Carer of someone with a disability
The earlier you contact AccessAbility the better.
You can contact AccessAbility any time during your study however it is important to understand that the earlier you make contact, the easier it will be to implement your adjustments and alleviate any stress that may be caused by tight deadlines.
To determine suitable reasonable adjustments, your AccessAbility Advisor will look at the following:
- the nature and onset of your disability/injury or health condition (including supporting medical documentation)
- the type of assessment and course requirements for your studies
- your ability to participate in courses or programs
- your usual work methods and strategies to achieve learning outcomes
- general consultation with you
- a focus on enhancing independence and developing strategies/skills
- the effect of the proposed adjustment on others, including academic staff, and other students
- the overall costs and benefits of making the adjustment
Reasonable adjustments are put in place by the AccessAbility Services team for those students with a diagnosed disability or illness.
Special Consideration takes into account short-term and/or unforeseen circumstances (known as Extenuating Circumstances) that substantially affects a student's ability to complete an assessment item.
Please refer to the Special Consideration and Extenuating Circumstances pages on the ÐÄÌøÖ±²¥ website for further information.
If you are already registered with AccessAbility Services and want to access or review the supports you currently have in place:
- Log into the Access Student Portal and use the options in the menu on the left
- Select Service Requests
- Initial Adjustments Request
If you are already registered with AccessAbility Services and want to request a change to your Access Plan, please book an appointment with an Advisor to discuss. Click to log into the Access Student Portal to request an appointment.
ÐÄÌøÖ±²¥'s Student Disability Policy and the AccessAbility Support and Access Plan Procedure outline the process for negotiating and confirming Access Plans.
If it is a new illness and short term or unforeseen - this will require you to apply for special consideration, which you can request in addition to your Access Plan. Complete and submit the Special Consideration application form.