Instructions to apply for accommodations

First, you will need an SMU ID and access to a PC, Mac, or laptop to apply for services and to upload documents.

Next, review the documentation guidelines applicable to your disability, as you are responsible for submitting documentation that supports your request and complies with these guidelines. A couple of things to keep in mind about disability-related documentation at the post-secondary level:

• Individual Education Plans (IEP's) and 504 plans from high school are generally not considered sufficient documentation at this level, but in some cases may contain the test report and scores that we require. 

• At this level, it is the student's responsibility to pay all costs involved in obtaining evaluations and documentation of a disability.

If you need new, updated documentation, we recommend providing a copy of the guidelines associated with your disability to your qualified professional before the preparation of your documentation. If you or your qualified professional wish to discuss the documentation guidelines, please phone DASS at 214-768-1470.  

If you already have supporting documentation (e.g., doctor’s summary, psycho-educational report, high school accommodation verification, SAT/ACT accommodation verification), gather or create electronic versions of it. Ensure that the files are available from the device you’re using to make your request. 

The following requests have additional requirements and generally take more time to review. You can find more about all of these in Types of Accommodations:

• Housing-related requests: Please carefully review the information about housing accommodations, located on the Types of Accommodations page under "Other Non-academic Accommodations." The instructions incluide links to the additional student self-report form and optional provider form.
• Dining-related requests: Please carefully review the information about dining accommodations, located on the Types of Accommodations page under "Other Non-academic Accommodations." This includes details about your responsibility to contact the SMU dietician before making your request through DASS.
• Requests regarding SMU's second language proficiency requirement: Please carefully review the information about course substitutions, located on the Types of Accommodations page under "Other Academic Accommodations." The instructions include the additional online application for second language substitution request.

Using your PC, Mac, or laptop (not a phone or tablet), access the Accommodation Request Form.

With this form, you will provide us with important information about your disability and how it affects you, as well as make your formal request for accommodations and services. These can be both academic and non-academic (e.g., housing/dining) accommodations. Once you select the type of accommodations you are requesting, additional questions based on your choice may appear. 

Students, we ask that you complete this form, not parents, guardians, or educational consultants. 

Tips and troubleshooting:

• Plan to spend 20-25 minutes completing this form.
• Complete the form in a single sitting in no more than 30 minutes, as it may time out. 
• We recommend that you read over the form and get familiar with it before starting it.
• We recommend that students who need more time to complete the form copy the questions, answer them in another word processing program, and then copy/paste the answers into our form's fields.
• Have only the browser window with the form open on your device; close other windows and tabs.
• Do not have multiple versions of the form open on your device at the same time.
• Do not have DASS Link open on your device while completing the form.

To upload the documentation:

1. click the Add Item button at the bottom of the form. 
2. In the box titled Document Title, provide a title for your document.
3. In the box titled Description, provide any additional information about the document. 
4. Select Choose File and then the specific file from your computer. You can upload more than one document to the form. 
5. Confirm that your documents have uploaded and that your accommodation request is accurate, then select Submit at the bottom of the form. A message will appear at the top of the form stating your Accommodation Request has been successfully submitted to DASS. 

Documentation is reviewed by DASS within two to three weeks of receipt of both the Accommodation Request Form and the complete documentation.

PLEASE NOTE:

• Upload your documents in PDF, if possible. Using PDFs, as opposed to other file types, allows you to upload multiple reports and reports with high page counts. Do not upload a report's pages individually, for example as multiple, individual JPG files. If your diagnostic report has 12 pages, upload these as one PDF document, not 12 separate JPG files.

• It is critically important that you upload ALL of the documentation that you have in order for the Coordinator to have a complete file upon review. You want your file to be complete once it comes up in the queue to be reviewed, so please do include ALL information, including a history of accommodation and the most current report from any current provider. For example, if you marked “Yes” to having accommodations in high school and/or on the ACT/SAT or at another college but don’t share the documents regarding those approvals, that will likely delay your request. Also, if you take medication, a letter should always be included from the prescribing physician to help us understand current impact. If you have questions about this, please call our office at 214-768-1470.

• You will be unable to make changes directly to the form once it has been submitted. Changes and additional accommodation requests should be communicated to DASS once your DASS Coordinator reaches out to you, or you can email our office at dass@smu.edu.

Once we receive your request, you will receive a confirmation email in your smu.edu email account. The confirmation email will contain instructions about DASS Link, the online portal you’ll use to communicate with our office. 

Logging in to DASS Link is easy! Just go to the DASS Link log-in page. The header says Symplicity. Enter your SMU student ID and password, just like when you log in to my.SMU.

PLEASE NOTE: DASS Link and DASS staff members send email messages to students via their SMU email account ONLY. Check your SMU email account regularly to make sure you do not miss any important messages from the DASS office.

DASS staff members review each student's request for services on a case-by-case basis. Using the information you provided in the Accommodation Request Form and the supporting documentation you submitted, they will confirm your diagnoses, look at the impact on you, and determine your disability status at SMU along with your need for reasonable, meaningful accommodations here. Please note that if accommodations are authorized, they may not necessarily be the same as those received in high school or at another college or university. 

After the review, your DASS Coordinator will notify you by email of the outcome of the review:

• If accommodations are approved, you will need to set up an intake meeting with your Coordinator through DASS Link. Once logged in to DASS Link, click Appointment from the menu on the left side of your homepage. When the screen refreshes, click the Request New Appointment button. When the page refreshes, select Intake for the type of appointment, the date and time range that works with your schedule, the location of the appointment (Virtual Appointment), the appropriate coordinator (his/her name will be on your intake request email), and the days of the week that work for your timeframe. Available days and times will appear on the right side of the page. Select the one that’s best for you, and submit the request. You’ll receive a confirmation from your DASS Coordinator finalizing the appointment. Note that the appointment is finalized only when you receive a confirmation from the DASS staff member with whom you plan to meet.
• If an accommodation is not approved, your Coordinator will communicate that with you, including what additional information may be needed to move forward. DASS reserves the right to request additional or updated documentation, as needed.

During your intake appointment, your DASS Coordinator will go over procedures for how to work with faculty or SMU administrators to implement your authorized accommodations and/or services. If you have academic accommodations (e.g., extended time testing, note taking assistance, etc.), your Coordinator will create your first Letter of Accommodation. This letter contains a list of the accommodations that DASS has authorized for you to utilize at SMU. To see a copy of your letter at any time, log in to your DASS Link account, select the blue Accommodation tab, and on the Accommodations page, click the gray Letters tab. 

When you want to send a Letter of Accommodation to the instructor of a course in which you are enrolled, head to DASS Link and make a Semester Request. Students usually make Semester Requests about 1-2 weeks before the start of a new semester. Remember, instructors will need time to implement your accommodations once they receive your Accommodation Letter. 

You should set up an appointment to discuss the letter with each of your instructors in order to implement accommodations for each class. Failure to communicate with your instructors could lead to a delay in implementing your accommodations.