Making the Impossible Possible

Today is the day I attend my official convocation ceremony for my Psychology degree from Grant MacEwan University. My time there has overall been an excellent experience. However, there is always a few bumps along the road. A few weeks ago, I was in an Asperger’s chat room and was saddened to see that many young adults with AS did not get the supports they needed to finish high school, much less attend post secondary education. Here are a few of the things that worked for me:

-A strong family support network made a major difference. My parents and brother have a good educational background and were able to tutor me in courses such as chemistry or math-based courses. I have a unique learning style and my Mom was able to speak “my language” to enable me to grasp concepts. In my early days of university, my parents often helped me advocate for myself.


-I was not afraid to accept disability services. I registered with Services for Students with Disabilities and received accommodations such as a computer to type essay questions due to coordination difficulties. SSD also helped me advocate for myself and explain my disability to professors. I also accepted our province's disability income support system (AISH) which encourages people to be as independent as possible. Most jobs are not open to me due to my communication and coordination difficulties, even though I can work in specialized knowledge-based settings. If partial support is available, take advantage of it. If all works out, someday, your taxes will help others in the situation you were in when you were younger.

-I received encouragement and mentorship from professors. Working on a research project with my supervisor allowed me to have a consistent thing to focus on and the experience taught me invaluable things about collaboration and social interaction in general. I also learned how to make a good hypothesis that I came up with into a professional research paper.

-I was not afraid to make a switch when my original program wasn’t working for me. The communication skills difficulties of AS made my practicum in education a nightmare so after some frustration, I made the switch to a more research-based direction. There were setbacks and problems and when I reached a dead end, I would turn around and find another route.

-It took me 6.5 years to finish my BA degree, but it happened with a 3.5 GPA (3.7 at MacEwan, not counting the few science courses I took at U of A), a paper in press for publication, and an acceptance to a Master’s program in educational psychology.

I advise others with AS who have similar aspirations to utilize the supports they need (this cannot be done alone) in order to make a dream like this become a reality. It won’t be easy and many times it will seem like you won’t be able to make it any further, but it can happen. For those of you in high school who are frustrated with the constant bullying and lack of understanding of teachers and peers. Don’t give up. You have too many good things ahead of you.