SPS - Special needs support

SPS stands for Special Educational Support (in Danish, Specialpædagogisk Støtte)
SPS is a scheme designed to ensure that you can study on equal terms with your fellow students, even if you have a disability, disorder or diagnosis.
Read more at spsu.dk about how to get SPS.

At SDU, there are four groups of students to whom we can give SPS. They are students with:

• Mental health diagnoses or neurological disorders
• Physical disabilities
• Dyslexia
• Dyscalculia (‘number blindness’)

You can get SPS support during your education programme if you have a mental health diagnosis or a neurological disorder

SPS is targeted at you and your education and is based on the difficulties you experience in your studies. Support can include appointments with an SPS adviser.

You make an agreement with your SPS adviser about how your support plan will look.

At SDU, SPS support is provided by Olivia Denmark.

The SPS office at SDU will apply for the support for you. So contact us if you have a mental health diagnosis or a neurological disorder and need support with your education.

If you have any questions, you are welcome to contact us.

Help for students with a physical disability

If you have a documented physical disability, for example, if you require a mobility aid, are blind or partially sighted, deaf or have a hearing impairment, you can apply for help with your studies through SPS – Special Educational Support. You can read more about the offers that are usually provided at spsu.dk.

What help can you get?

The aids and services provided are customised for the individual. You should therefore contact the SPS office at SDU via SPOC or by phone at 6550 1800. The SPS office will apply to the Board for Education and Quality for aids for you.

Specialised rooms in the campus halls of residence

If you need a place to live and have a physical disability and, for example, sit in a wheelchair, read more about the Campus House’s accessible rooms.

Do you have dyslexia?

If you have been diagnosed with dyslexia, you can get support for your studies. The support will usually consist of IT aids and study support hours with a reading and writing specialist. Contact the SPS office via SPOC to apply for support.

You can read more about support opportunities at spsu.dk.

If you have previously received support, you can often transfer this support to the University. Contact the SPS office at SDU via SPOC so you can have your support transferred.

Do you suspect that you have dyslexia?

If as a student you suspect that you have dyslexia, you can be tested at SDU. The SPS office will apply to the Board for Education and Quality for a test for you. When you are tested for dyslexia, we begin with a conversation about your difficulties. Then, if there is reason to believe you may have dyslexia, you will take the Dyslexia Test, which is the national, web-based test. After the dyslexia test, there is an opportunity for further testing, depending on the results.

Symptoms of dyslexia can be:

• Reduced reading speed. 
• You become very tired or unfocused when you are reading.
• Spelling difficulties, e.g. problems with missing endings or swapping letters.
• Problems with expressing yourself in writing. Others may not understand what you have written, even if the text makes sense to you.
• Problems learning foreign languages, especially in relation to reading and writing foreign languages.

Dyslexia is sometimes also called ‘word blind’. It comes in many degrees of severity, but if you recognise several of these symptoms, you may have dyslexia.

If you would like to be tested for dyslexia, contact the SPS office.

Are you ‘number blind’?

It is estimated that 2–6% of the population have difficulties with numeracy and mathematics due to ‘number blindness’ – also called dyscalculia. 
If you know that you have dyscalculia and have evidence of it, you can receive support in your studies. You can also be tested at SDU if you suspect that you have dyscalculia.

Symptoms of dyscalculia can be:

• Difficulties with reading and writing numbers.
• The four types of arithmetic: adding, subtracting, multiplying and dividing are difficult – you do not exactly have them ‘down pat’. 
• Difficulty in solving problems involving both text and formulas and having to make calculations. 
• Difficulties in planning time, assessing time consumption.
• Impaired sense of place and direction.
• Difficulty knowing the difference between left and right.

Dyscalculia comes in varying degrees of severity, but if you recognise several of these symptoms, you may have it. 

Test for dyscalculia

If you suspect that you may have dyscalculia, you can be tested at SDU. To be tested, contact the SPS office. The SPS office will apply to the Board for Education and Quality for a test for you.

The test is carried out by a reading specialist trained in the field of dyscalculia and takes about three hours. 

What support can you get when you have dyscalculia?

Academic support is available for students with dyscalculia, typically from a fellow student who is experienced in the methods and requirements of the education programme. The student will act as a sparring partner and support your immersion in the issues and assignments covered in tutorials, lectures or e-lessons. In addition, you can be allocated study support hours with a reading specialist.

At spsu.dk you can read more about support and aids for students with dyscalculia.

 

The SPS office at SDU will apply for the support on your behalf.

What we can do if:

1. You are enrolled as a full-time student at SDU
2. We have documentation of your diagnosis, disability or condition

1. How do I show that I am a full-time student at SDU?

We can see that in our system. However, if you are a new student at SDU, you must have accepted your study place before we can apply for your support.

2. What kind of medical certificate is needed?

Documentation requirements depend on the diagnosis, disability or condition you have. If you have dyslexia or dyscalculia and have received support in the past, we can see the documentation in the system and you do not need to send any documentation.
Good medical documentation should include:

• A clear diagnosis or description of your disability or condition
• A brief description of any treatment you are receiving
• A description of the impact of the diagnosis, disability or condition on you and how it impacts your chances of completing your education.

It is not necessary to provide an original medical certificate. We can use a physical copy or a scan of the medical certificate.
On spsu.dk you can read more about documentation in relation to your specific diagnosis, disability or condition. 

What do I do once I have gathered all the documents?

Send the medical certificate  to us here at the SPS office via SPOC. We will then apply for the funding on your behalf.

You will receive a reply in your e-Boks.

If you have been granted the support, you will receive an email in your student inbox telling you what to do next regarding your SPS plan. 

If you have any questions or doubts, we’re here to help.

An SPS plan is very individual and is based on you as a student and your study-specific challenges. 
A plan always starts with you contacting the SPS office at SDU.

You can receive support for as long as you are enrolled as an active student at SDU.
Read more about the SPS framework at spsu.dk. 

Documentation requirements depend on the diagnosis, disability or condition you have.

If you have dyslexia or dyscalculia and have received support in the past, we can see the documentation in the system and you do not need to send any documentation.

Good medical documentation should include:

• A clear diagnosis or description of your disability or condition
• A brief description of any treatment you are receiving
• A description of the impact of the diagnosis, disability or condition on you and how it impacts your chances of completing your education.

It is not necessary to provide an original medical certificate. We can use a physical copy or a scan of the medical certificate.

On spsu.dk you can read more about documentation in relation to your specific diagnosis, disability or condition.

If you have any questions or doubts, we are here to help

If you wish to take your exam under special examination conditions, you must apply to your study board. This can include extra time for exams or using the IT aids you have been provided with through SPS.

Read more about this on SDU's general rules on exemption.

Your questions are always very welcome

You can contact us via SPOC or by phone at (+45) 6550 1800.

You are welcome to make an appointment with us or come by during our opening hours, which are Monday to Friday, 10:00 a.m.–2:00 p.m. You will find us by walking along Gydehutten (SDU Odense) and turning off at Agrene Ø (just by U75). Go up the stairs and follow the signs to SPS. 
Student Services can help you with directions. 

You can read much more about how to get SPS at spsu.dk.

Read the code of equal access and equal opportunities for students at SDU (disability policy).