thanks healthy11. to answer your question, he's interested in a career in education and/or chemistry. i guess part of my question is that i thought that by him being on an IEP, that this would help him get into college, if he chose to do so. his guidance counselor tells me that that is not true. i'm completely new to the college admissions process, and know that i have a lot of homework to do so that i'm informed. i will look at the group and link that you provided, thank you again.

Your son's counselor has given you accurate information. IEP's are only for kids in public schools through grade 12. After that, the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) applies, which amounts to saying that schools must provide reasonable accommodations, not remediation or extra tutoring, etc. There are a few colleges that may provide additional assistance to students, often for an extra fee, but before universities discuss detailed support systems available with you, you'll want to know if your son has a reasonable chance of being accepted in the first place. If he can't meet the regular admission criteria, he may want to go the community college path, because after 30 or so credit hours are earned there, transferring to another institution will be less dependent on his mediocre high school grades or ACT/SAT scores, and the focus will be on his community college accomplishments.

In the short term, having an IEP may help your son get accommodations on his ACT/SAT testing....the high school counselor ought to be able to assist you with that. If you son gets extended time, for example, it may help him to improve his scores, and thereby improve his chances of being accepted into particular colleges....There is way too much to discuss here....please do join the college/young adults forum at www.millermom.proboards107.com to gain a much more in-depth understanding of how kids with special needs can get to the next phase of their lives.

There's a college out there for everybody. Local community colleges most often have open admissions but go to www.fairtest.com for a list of colleges that do not require SAT or ACT test scores. Get hold the K&W Guide to Colleges for Students with LD if you want a college that will work more closely with your son's learning differences.
You don't say what area you live in or what area your son wants his college to be in - post back with that kind of information if you want college suggestions. The Princeton Review's Guide to Colleges is good but best is a book called The College Admission Mystique that speaks strongly to the idea that there's a college out there for everybody.

teacherparent- my son would like to stay in the northeast and as far south as Virginia. We live in NJ. thank you for your response ;-)

collegehelp1, if you join the other group I mentioned, there's actually a young adult who uses the name "bros," and he lives in NJ and is in college, studying special ed...He's got a wealth of information about schools in your area, special services, etc.

www.fairtest.org/university/optional

That's the address of the site that gives a list of over 800 colleges that don't require SAT/ACTs. Boston has over 100 colleges in its immediate area alone. The idea that a student can't get into college is never true and all colleges and universities these days are required by law to have an office of disabilities that oversees students with learning differences.

I like a small college called Albright College - it has a nice science program and your son's average grades would be welcome there but it's in a small Pennsylvania town and I'd like better any one of a dozen colleges in the Boston area.Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Rochester Institute of Technology - those are nice schools in the Northeast for a student interested in chemistry.

I'd suggest again getting hold of a copy of The K&W Guide to Colleges for Students with Learning Differences. Your son's guidance counselor should have a copy but if not you can easily buy a used one on Amazon.

Your son's IEP will not help him gain admission to any college but neither would it prevent him. Average grades are not a problem - there are Lots of colleges out there - and if check out the Fairtest site you'll find Lots of colleges that don't care about his test scores.
Good luck.

thanks for all the helpful information - it's a great start

PS - If you're going to look at colleges that do require SAT/ACT scores, I'd avoid considering those colleges that also require Subject Tests. Carnegie Mellon for example requires that prospective students take three subject tests and - for example, Rensselaer Polytechnic does not - yet both are considered equally fine schools.
If your son does not do well on standardized tests and many kids with learning differences do not - then why have him be subjected to more such test taking? The K&W Guide should tell you which colleges do require subject tests, the Princeton Review Guide certainly does but it only reviews about 350 colleges and there are Many More colleges than that.
These days any college's website should tell you whether the college requires subject test scores.

We found the K&W Guide to be disappointing when we were doing college research...It didn't give details about which schools offered which majors, and other information was lacking. I think students are better off registering at sites like www.fastweb.com

there is web site that provides a list of schools with comprehensive support services for LD students some suggestions CW Post Long Island university, Barry University, Lynn College, Full Sail College