Careers For Students
With Disabilities
Written and Compiled by Dr. Joe Camp, Career Counselor, November,
1998
INTRODUCTION
Records indicate that
the following people had various forms of challenging conditions.
Albert Einstein had dyslexia, General George Patton had a learning disability,
James Earl Jones stutters, Cher has dyslexia, and Tom Cruise has a learning
disability. All of these successful people learned to balance life
demands with their disabilities.
The Career Development
Center at the University of North Florida (UNF) operates in collaboration
with the Disabled Student Services Program. Any person with a disability
recognized by staff at the Career Development Center either through screening
assessment, disclosure, or observation is referred to the Disabled Student
Services Program. Certain legal rights may be available to students
who have a documented disability.
AMERICANS WITH
DISABILITIES ACT (ADA)
The Americans with
Disabilities Act (ADA) gives federal civil rights protection to persons
with various disabilities. The following is designed to give you
BASIC information on the ADA. For additional information on the
ADA please use the resource list at the end of this brief review.
Under the Americans
with Disabilities Act it is illegal for employers to discriminate on the
basis of disability against qualified individuals. This includes
every step in the employment process including recruiting. Three
categories of persons with disabilities are covered by the ADA:
1) Persons with
physical or mental impairments that substantially limit one or more major
life activities.
2) Persons with
a record or history of such impairment.
3) Persons who
appear to have such an impairment (either the impairment is wrongly seen
as limiting or is limiting as the result of others attitudes towards the
impairment or when a person has no impairment but impairment is believed
to exist)
Regarding employment,
the ADA defines qualified individuals with disabilities as applicants
who satisfy job- related requirements of the position. The ADA is
designed to provide protection against employers who may screen out qualified
individuals only because they have a disability. According
to the ADA, reasonable accommodations are required to enable qualified
employees with disabilities to meet the requirements of the job.
"Reasonable Accommodation" is defined as any accommodation which does
not produce undue hardship on the employer.
KNOW YOUR RIGHTS
When applying for
a job or interviewing for a position, it is best to know your rights.
Here are a few guidelines to help assist you. For more specific
information, check with one of the many supporting agencies listed in
this report. The more you know about the ADA before you start your
job search the more prepared you will be.
Under the ADA, questions
about whether an applicant is a person with a disability, or as to the
nature or severity of the disability are prohibited. Questions seeking
information on prior or current illnesses, medication, medical treatment,
substance abuse, disabilities, injuries, worker's compensation claims
and/or family medical history are all prohibited. In addition, questions
closely related to disability are also prohibited. For example,
"Do you have any kind of disability?" or "Have you had any recent or past
operations?" Legal questions regard your ability to do the job or
do the job with some level of accommodation.
If an applicant chooses
to disclose a disability or the disability is a visible disability, the
employer may ask the applicant to describe or demonstrate how she/he may
carry out the job duties with or without accommodation. The applicant
may have to demonstrate the ability to do the job.
The ADA prohibits
discrimination by all private employers with 15 or more employees as well
as all public entities regardless of size. Federal tax incentives
are available to help meet the cost of ADA compliance.
For more information
on the ADA and other services for persons with disabilities, please see
the Disabled Services Center at UNF. The following agencies are
also available to provide information and services for persons with disabilities:
IMPORTANT RESOURCES
Department of Justice
- Office on the Americans with Disabilities Act
P.O. Box 66118
Washington, DC 20035
Hotline: 202-514-0301
TT: 202-514-0383
Equal Employment
Opportunity Commission
1801 L. Street NW
Washington, DC 20507
1-800-669-3362
Florida Governor's
Alliance for Citizens
Magnolia Office Park
345 South Magnolia Drive #11
Tallahassee, Florida 32301
ADA Regional Disability
and Business Technical Assistance Center
Hotline: 1-800-949-4232
American Federation
of Labor & Congress of Industrial Organizations
815 16th Street, NW
Washington, DC 20006
Association for
Persons in Supported Employment
5001 West Broad Street #34
Richmond, VA 23230
Direct Link for
the Disabled
P. O. Box 1036
Dole Foundation
for the Employment of People with Disabilities
1819 H Street NW
Washington, DC 20006
Foundation on Employment
and Disability
3820 Del Amo Blvd. #201
Torrence, Ca 90503
Just One Break
373 Park Avenue South
New York, NY 10016
National Center
for Disability Services
201 I.U. Willetts Road
Albertson, NY 11507
National Organization
on Disability
910 16th Street NW # 600
Washington D.C. 20006
SPECIAL CONSIDERATIONS
FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES
While the career development
process is similar for everyone, there are special things to think about
at each step in the process. This section will go through the process
step-by-step and discuss some of these considerations.
Step One: Assessment
Everyone has both strengths and weaknesses which they bring to a career
setting. Many people forget this and seek a career because of financial
considerations or prestige considerations only to find out that in some
instances they are unhappy with the job because it does not suit them.
It is realistic to find a career that fits you. Formal assessment
is available through the Career Center at UNF and many books about self-assessment
are also available.
Step Two: Degree
Selection and completion
Please see the handout available in the Career Development Center called,
Assessment , Career Exploration, Degree Selection and Career Implementation.
for information on the college four year plan.
Step Three: Career
Exploration
In looking for a career, focus on the job requirements. Do you feel
comfortable and competent to meet the demands of the career? Think
about any difficulties you may encounter. What compromises are you
prepared to make? Have a backup plan! In reality, many people
cannot find the perfect job or career field on their first try.
Ask yourself what your second or third choice would be. Is there
a related career which fits you better? Finally, make a list of
requirements you have for your career. Will you need special accommodations
within this field? What will you need to be successful?
Step Four: Acquire
Experience
You can test a career choice and gain experience by working in your field
while you continue your studies. Finding an educational experience
position incorporates many challenges of the job search. Please
refer to the handout "Assessment, Researching Careers, The College Experience
and Occupational Selection for many tips on work experience opportunities.
Step five: Job
Search
In applying for any position, knowing the company or organization you
would be working for is very important. In addition to background
information, find out about their attitude toward employees with disabilities.
Although programs like the ADA protect applicants under the law, some
employers are more open to employees with special needs. Talking
with existing employees can be very helpful. The corporate or business
culture will become very apparent to you. If you are researching
many employers, make a note as to whether they are most likely to hire
a person with a disability or not.
In the application
and interview process, many people struggle with the question of whether
or not to tell the employer about a disability (disclosure) or not to
tell. The first decision you must make is whether or not disclosure
is in your interest. Witt (1992) recommends asking yourself the
following question: "will disclosure of my disability at this time, in
any way, support my objective of getting hired?" If you are applying
with a company that you have selected as most likely to hire a person
with a disability you may choose to disclose. If there is any chance
that the employer will view the disability negatively, do not disclose.
Unless your disability helps you meet a responsibility of the job, do
not disclose. Overall, if you have a disability which will not affect
any job-related function or does not need any accommodations, you may
choose not to disclose. Federal regulations state that you need
not disclose your disability to prospective employers unless it affects
your ability to perform the job functions.
If you prefer to disclose
or feel that the job requires a function that you may not be able to do
as a result of the disability, or you need special accommodations you
may choose to disclose.
A visible disability
is a different story. You may want to disclose this type of disability
in a cover letter or in phone communications so as not to surprise the
interviewer. If your disability requires an accommodation it should
be discussed before any offer is made or accepted. If you wait until
an offer is made to disclose, either because you need an accommodation
or simply waited, it may backfire and seem dishonest to the employer.
At anytime you disclose, remember to emphasize your strengths and how
overcoming your disability has made you a stronger person and therefore
a stronger employee.
No matter when you
disclose, it will probably fall upon you to educate the employer on your
disability. Whether you need an accommodation or not the employer
may need some background information on your disability. You may
be required to provide documentation to support your claim of a disability
(e.g., medical verification, psychological documentation, etc.).
Know your rights!
The ADA spells out specific guidelines for employers on interviewing and
hiring practices. The more you know about these guidelines the more
you will be able to protect yourself against discrimination.
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