3 back to University tips for students with hearing loss

Well, September’s here and that means school is back for everyone!

From 3 -year-old preschoolers to 60-year-old mature students, it’s time to dust off the notepads and put on your thinking caps.

And while it’s exciting to go back, for many students with hearing loss it can be a stressful time.

That’s why we have come up with this short article with 3 tips for students with hearing loss who are heading back into education this month.

Do your research

It may seem obvious, but knowing your options before you arrive is always a good idea.

Different schools and universities have different services and arrangements for deaf and hard of hearing students, with some more advanced than others.

You can usually find this information on their website, or on resources for hearing impaired students.

Sign language interpretation, live captioning, and note-taking are all examples of things that may be provided by an institution – but you have to know about them to ask for them!

Use technology to your advantage

There is a plethora of apps for your phone that are aimed towards education and hearing loss.

Useful apps for hearing loss include speech-to-text apps, apps that can pick up and amplify speech while reducing background noise, decibel measuring apps, and more.

While most people who are deaf will have something on their phone to help them in everyday life, there are apps which are specifically made for an educational setting.

These make life a lot easier for students to navigate lectures, classes, and activities at uni.

Be open and honest about your hearing loss

University is very different from high school.

If you have hearing issues and kept quiet about them in school due to embarrassment, fear of being mocked or excluded, or simply didn’t want to be different, then you need not worry.

University is a time and a place to make friends and learn how to communicate with people from all walks of life.

Uni students are no longer insecure, childish teenagers, picking on those who are different. In fact, standing out at University is what makes people popular, so don’t let your disability hold you back.

Inside the classroom, any teacher or lecturer will be happy to make accommodations for you, but only if they know about your hearing loss! Don’t be afraid to let people know you’re struggling and need help.

There are always other options available if you had trouble following along, like written lecture outlines or even a recording you could listen to later.

How we can help with your education

The easiest way for students with hearing problems to keep up with a lecture is with live captioning.

This allows students to read the lecture, word by word, at the same speed as their peers hear it, enabling them to answer questions, participate in discussions, and make comments, levelling the playing field for everyone.

Our speech to text reporters (STTR) and CART captioners can caption word for word at up to 360 words per minute, with only a one second lag time!

Many in our team are higher education career consultants, working regularly with student disability officers to deliver exceptional, high-quality live captioning.

All our speech to text reporters and CART captioners are registered and accredited by internationally-recognised professional associations, all of which have high qualification requirements and abide by their professional codes of conduct.

If you would like to know more about live captioning on your University course, please don’t hesitate to contact us with any questions you may have.