Disability study support
The basis for Halmstad University is that everyone should have an equal opportunity to study at the University. On this page, you can read about the support available for students with a permanent disability and how to apply for it. The support is intended to provide the conditions necessary for you to achieve the learning outcomes – the educational goals that apply to all students.
Support for permanent disability
All students who have a permanent disability that affects their studies can be granted disability study support. The purpose of disability study support is to enable the student to study on similar terms.
Permanent disabilities could, for example, be:
- Dyslexia
- Neuropsychiatric disabilities (such as ADHD, autism or language disorders)
- Mental health issues
- Visual impairment
- Hearing impairment
- Mobility impairments
- Other chronic illnesses
If you have a temporary impairment, such as an injured hand that makes it difficult to write for a couple of months, you are not covered by disability study support and the administrator cannot decide on support. Instead, you should contact the course or programme director.
If you are unsure whether your disability is considered permanent or where to turn if you want a medical assessment, you are always welcome to contact the administrator for disability study support for advice.
Disability in the Discrimination Act
In the Discrimination Act (SFS 2008:567), disability is described as:
“permanent physical, mental or intellectual limitation of a person’s functional capacity that, as a consequence of injury or illness, existed at birth, has arisen since then or can be expected to arise.”
International students
You can receive disability study support if you are a student from another country who studies temporarily in Sweden. You apply in the manner described on this page. You may need to translate your medical documentation into Swedish or English. A licensed translator must do this. You can also contact your local healthcare provider to see if they can write a certificate in English.
If you are an exchange student, e.g., via the Erasmus programme, your home university pays for support with more expensive costs. Therefore, contact both your home university and Halmstad University well in advance.
Halmstad University cannot help you with adapted accommodation, personal assistance or transportation.
Different kinds of support for students with a disability
The support you can receive depends on how your disability affects your studies. The support is planned and designed in consultation with you.
The different types of disability study support mentioned in the list below are the most common, but there may also be other kinds. After applying, you can discuss with the administrator which support might be suitable based on your disability.
The administrator can decide on some support, but some can only be recommended. It is usually the course examiner who decides on recommended support.
Examples of disability study support
- Adapted examination, such as:
- Extended writing time.
- Computer, equipped with spell-check and text-to-speech, for written exams.
- Writing exams on campus in a smaller group.
- Oral examination instead of written.
- Note-taking support, which means help with taking notes during lectures.
- Mentor, who provides support in planning and structuring studies. A mentor is granted for a maximum of two semesters.
Talking books
Talking books can be offered via Legimus for those with a reading impairment due to a disability. The library manages Legimus. If you need talking books for written exams where literature is allowed, you need to apply for disability study support, though.
Text-to-speech – ClaroRead
All students can download the text-to-speech software ClaroRead for free. This software has many features, from reading texts aloud to converting locked documents into listenable texts. You can find it on this page:
Other support
There is also support available for all students at Halmstad University, such as language advisors. You can read more about study support at Halmstad University here:
Study Support for students at Halmstad University
Apply for disability study support
To be granted disability study support, you must apply. Please apply as soon as you are admitted to receive your support on time.
The application is made digitally in a system called Nais. Nais is a national system used by most universities. However, one university cannot access the data of other universities, so even if you have been granted disability study support in Nais at another university, you must submit a new application to Halmstad University.
You can choose between four different methods for logging into Nais:
- your student account at Halmstad University,
- Bank-ID
- login to antagning.se
- edu-ID
You must attach medical documentation confirming your permanent disability to your application. The documentation must be issued by a professional expert in the field, such as a doctor, psychologist or speech therapist. The documentation should include:
- Personal data (your name and personal identity number, or date of birth if you don’t have a Swedish personal identity number)
- Date of the assessment or medical contact
- Who issued the documentation (name and profession)
- Description of the disability
In some cases, a description of how long the disability is expected to last, how long you have had the disability or medical contact, may be needed.
Below is a guide on how to apply in Nais. The video is in Swedish but has English subtitles.
After the application
Once you have applied in Nais, the administrator for disability study support will contact you, usually via email. Be mindful of the email address you provide and check your spam folder.
Usually, a meeting is scheduled where you and the administrator discuss what support is relevant for you. In some cases, decisions can be made without a meeting. If you apply at the start of the semester, you may have to wait longer for a meeting, since most students apply at that time. To make sure you get your support on time, apply as soon as you are admitted to the University.
If the application lacks certain information, the administrator will request a supplement from you. If you are not deemed to meet the criteria for disability study support, the application may be rejected.
Decision in Nais
If you are granted disability study support, you will receive a written certificate of disability study support. This will detail all granted and recommended support. The certificate will indicate who decides on the recommended support, but it is usually the course examiner. Your responsibility as a student is to contact the relevant teacher or examiner well in advance. We recommend that you contact them at the start of the course. You must show the relevant person your certificate of disability study support from Nais.
Below, you can watch a video on how to find your certificate in Nais. There are subtitles in English.
If your need changes
If your need for support changes during your studies, you are responsible for reporting this to the administrator for disability study support. This applies whether you need additional or less support.
Contact
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Susanne Lindén
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Administrator for students with disabilities
