Disability services may be available to UMBC students who need assistance accessing their courses due to a temporary injury or medical condition. Temporary medical conditions may include injuries such as a broken hand, knee surgery recovery, injured limbs, impairments following medical treatments, or short-term illnesses such as a hospitalization for pneumonia. These temporary conditions may significantly impact major life activities and functions and thus, could require academic accommodations during a semester.
Temporary medical conditions and injuries are not disabilities as described under the ADA, but these conditions may make a student eligible for similar accommodations for the duration of time in which the student is impacted. These accommodations will be approved on a temporary, non-renewable basis. These conditions could become a permanent disability if they do not resolve or are exacerbated, and additional follow-up discussion and updated supporting medical documentation may be required to determine appropriate accommodations at that time.
Temporary injury or recovery conditions only:
- A student requesting accommodations due to a temporary condition or medical injury will need to register with the Office of Student Disability Services (SDS) by submitting the online Student Disability Services Registration Form that is required for all SDS registration and accommodation requests. This is done using the SDS Accommodate student portal that you log into using your MyUMBC credentials.
- To complete the registration, you will attach the supporting medical documentation of your injury/condition into the Accommodate student portal (if you have it in digital format). You can download the Temporary Injury/Condition Request Form to have your provider complete it for medical verification/documentation. You can scan this completed document in and attach it to your SDS registration or your provider can email, fax, or mail it directly to SDS.
- Upon receipt of medical documentation, the student will be contacted to schedule an intake meeting with an SDS disability specialist to discuss the condition, limitations and requested accommodations. This may be done in-person or via virtual chat in Google Meet/Hangouts or WebEx.
Please note: SDS does not provide personal assistance to students such as carrying books, loans of wheelchairs or crutches, golf carts for transport, personal attendants, or other travel assistance to classrooms or to residence halls. Students with temporary injuries that impact mobility are encouraged to view the accessible campus route maps and the UMBC transportation bus stops (UMBC Accessible Campus Map).
For additional questions related to navigating campus with an injury, UMBC’s ADA Coordinator/Accessibility Manager, Stephanie Lazarus, can be consulted by email slazar@umbc.edu or phone at 410-455-5745.