Resources for Students with Disabilities
AccessibleNU
AccessibleNU (ANU) supports and empowers students with disabilities by collaborating with the Northwestern community to ensure equal access and full participation in the student experience. Students who have disabilities, have utilized a 504 Plan or Individualized Education Plan in K–12, or have been approved for accommodations in other educational contexts are encouraged to learn more about ANU and the University’s accommodation process. Examples of disabling conditions might include attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, depression, learning disabilities, Crohn’s disease, and chronic migraines, among others.
The process for academic accommodation determination has three steps:
- If you have documentation regarding your condition, please upload or email it to accessiblenu@northwestern.edu. If you do not have documentation and/or would like to discuss the accommodation determination process, please call or email AccessibleNU to set up an informational appointment.
- Within approximately a week of receipt of your application and documentation, an AccessibleNU staff member will contact you to set up an accommodation meeting or to request additional information.
Receiving accommodations is an interactive process. At your accommodation meeting, you and your ANU advisor will discuss possible services and accommodations.
Please contact AccessibleNU during the summer as accommodations are non-retroactive and may require additional coordination.
Please note that ANU keeps your information confidential in compliance with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act; any information shared with our office is not included in your academic records.
Housing Accommodation Requests
To start the process for a disability-related campus housing accommodation determination, complete the following steps below. Rising second-year, third-year, and fourth-year students are encouraged to submit accommodation requests for the new academic year by February 1. Incoming first-year and transfer students are encouraged to submit accommodation requests by June 1:
- Review the disability documentation guidelines. For a housing accommodation request to be considered, documentation must be submitted to ANU.
- Once your application and documentation are submitted, ANU will review it. ANU will notify you via university email of the determination on your request typically within 2 weeks of the submission of the application and supporting documentation. If ANU has questions about your request, you may be asked to meet with an ANU Advisor.
During peak periods, the wait to receive a housing accommodation determination may exceed 2 weeks. Housing accommodations will be made based upon available spaces at that the time of requested accommodation.
Summer Placement Exam Accommodations
If you need accommodations for an online placement exam, plan to initiate the ANU application process four weeks in advance of your placement test. Please note that foreign language placement exams are not timed.