SASS - Student Academic Success Service | Because you learn for life

To register with the Academic Accommodations Service, students must provide documentation confirming the presence of a disability or bona fide medical condition and stating whether this disability or condition is permanent or temporary. Please note that under the Ontario Human Rights Code, students are not required to disclose their mental health diagnosis in order to access academic accommodations.

Students who need academic accommodations are asked to provide documentation from a qualified professional. This documentation must describe the student’s disability-related academic functional limitations in order to help the Academic Accommodations Service assess and establish the student’s academic accommodations.

The type of documentation and the qualified professionals able to provide it depends on the nature of the disability. (See below.)

Required Documentation Grid

Disability or Bona Fide Medical Condition	Qualified Professionals	Required Documentation (the Academic Accommodations Service requires one of the following documents)
ADHD/ADD	Specialized health professional (i.e. registered psychologist, registered psychological associate, neuropsychologist, psychiatrist) Treating family physician	Academic Accommodations Service Medical Certificate Neuropsychological or Psychoeducational Assessment
Autism spectrum disorder	Specialized health professional (I.e. registered psychologist, psychiatrist) Treating family physician	Academic Accommodations Service Medical Certificate Psychoeducational Assessment Other formal medical assessment or report
Chronic medical disabilities	Specialized health professional Treating family physician	Academic Accommodations Service Medical Certificate
Hearing disabilities	Audiologist Specialized health professional Treating family physician	Academic Accommodations Service Medical Certificate Audiology Assessment or Report
Learning disabilities	Registered psychologist Registered psychological associate	Psycho-Educational Assessment (PEA) Note: If you have an Individual Education Plan (IEP), if your PEA was done over 5 years ago, or if your PEA was done before you were 18 years old, temporary academic accommodations can be established for a semester while the Academic Accommodations Service helps you obtain a new PEA.
Mobility disabilities	Specialized health professional Treating family physician	Academic Accommodations Service Medical Certificate Physiotherapist Evaluation or Report Occupational Therapist Report
Mental health disabilities	Specialized health professional (i.e. psychiatrist, registered psychologist) Treating family physician	Medical Information Request Form for Mental Health Conditions
Visual disabilities	Specialized health professional (i.e. ophthalmologist, optometrist) Treating family physician	Academic Accommodations Service Medical Certificate Optometrist Report CNIB Functional Vision Assessment Report
Head injury /Traumatic brain injury	Specialized health professional (i.e. sports medicine physician, registered neuropsychologist, registered psychologist, neurologist) Treating family physician	Academic Accommodations Service Medical Certificate Neuropsychological Assessment Report
Temporary medical conditions	Specialized health professional Treating family physician	Academic Accommodations Service Medical Certificate
Other bona fide medical conditions	Specialized health professional Treating family physician	Academic Accommodations Service Medical Certificate

Academic Accommodations Service Medical Certificate (Access Service)

Print or download the PDF version of the Academic Accommodations Service Medical Certificate. This form must be filled out by the qualified professional—as indicated on the Academic Accommodations Service Required Documentation Grid—and be returned to the Academic Accommodations Service as soon as possible. (See Registration.)

Download the Academic Accommodations Service Medical Certificate (PDF)

Documents for Mental Health Condition

Download the Medical Information Request Form for Mental Health Conditions (PDF)

and

Download the Student Informed Consent for Mental Health Disability Documentation (PDF)

Academic Regulation 9.5

The Academic Accommodations Service Medical Certificate cannot be used to justify your absence from an examination or late submission of assignments. If you are absent from an examination, you must follow the rules stipulated in the University of Ottawa’s Academic Regulation 9.5.

Medical Assessment

If you are a student currently waiting for a medical assessment and you require special consideration, in compliance with the University of Ottawa’s Academic Regulation 9.5, the Academic Accommodations Service can provide you with interim accommodations.

If you have an @uOttawa email account:

Create your Ventus account

If you do not have an @uOttawa email account:

Contact the Academic Accommodations Service by email at adapt@uOttawa.ca or by telephone at 613-562-5976

Accountability

Notice of Collection of Personal Information

We are accountable to our clients.

Your personal information, collected under the authority of the University of Ottawa Act, is used to assess the eligibility of your registration with the Academic Accommodations Service and to manage your file. (See Handling of personal information and Student Record Policy 14a.)

We are also required to aggregate data on students with disabilities in the form of summary statistics. Data is grouped and tracked across time or across some other variables. No individual is identified, and no identifiers are provided.

If you have questions or comments, please contact the Academic Accommodations Service by email at adapt@uOttawa.ca or by telephone at 613-562-5976.

Confidentiality

All medical documentation provided remains confidential. It is stored in our student management system (Ventus), which is hosted on a secure server. Once academic accommodations for a student are established, the Academic Accommodations Service allows professors to access to the Confirmation of Academic Accommodation letter (CAM letter). The CAM letter outlines exclusively the academic accommodations established for a student—no diagnosis is disclosed.

Registering with the Academic Accommodations Service and receiving academic accommodations will not appear on the official University of Ottawa documents such as test results, academic transcripts, or university degrees.

Policy on Non-Disclosure of Disability

The Academic Accommodations Service will not disclose a student’s diagnosis to a third party, not even at the student’s request. It is the student’s choice to disclose their disability or medical condition on their own.

The Academic Accommodations Service will engage in collaborative discussions with stakeholders intimately implicated in the academic accommodation process. These discussions will focus on the student’s academic accommodation needs without disclosing their diagnosis.

Limits to Confidentiality

In cases where there is a reasonable and specific indication that a client poses a threat to themselves or to others, the Academic Accommodations Service has a duty to inform appropriate services.