Question: Who can join the Disabled Students Navigating STEM (DSNS) cohort program?
Answer: Any Bellevue College (BC) student who:
- Identifies as disabled and who plans to pursue a career in a science, technology, engineering, or math field (including medical and digital media arts)
- Plans to complete a STEM degree at BC or another institution.
- Places into ENG 072 or above at BC
- Commits to staying in the DSNS program for fall, winter, and spring of the first year
Question: Can I be in more than one cohort?
Answer: Yes! If you are a neurodivergent student who would like support in managing your classes, communicating with faculty and others, and learning about yourself from a strengths-based perspective, AND you are pursuing a career in STEM, you may wish to join both the Neurodiversity Navigators cohort along with the DSNS cohort or the STEM to Stern (StS) cohort. You may, of course, join another cohort program such as Umoja or Puente.
Question: How can I decide which cohort to join?
If you are neurodivergent and feel that you may need support in managing your classes, communicating with faculty and others, and learning about yourself from a strengths-based perspective, you might wish to consider joining the Neurodiversity Navigators cohort for your first year, and then moving over to the Disabled Students Navigating STEM cohort for your second year. In Neurodiversity Navigators, you’ll have a trained peer mentor to support you, as well as cohort classes designed to get you on the right track in your college career. It’s all up to you, and we can meet with you to help you decide.
Question: Why would I choose DSNS instead of STEM to Stern? Do I have to join the disabled cohort if I’m disabled?
Answer: You can join whichever cohort you’d like to! In fact, the two cohorts will be working closely together – they are “sibling” cohorts and will have very similar curriculum and will often share classes, panels, and events. DSNS and StS become one larger cohort in the second year of both programs, with both groups taking cohort classes together.
The difference is that the DSNS cohort adds a once-a-week meeting with your classmates for the purpose of brainstorming, problem-solving, and more. You’ll be meeting disabled industry mentors as well. In addition, the curriculum will include navigating college and the workplace while managing disabilities, exploring your disabled identity, and learning how to spot and deal with ableism at school and at work.
Question: Do I have to be registered with the Disability Resource Center to join DSNS?
Answer: No, you don’t need to, although we highly recommend doing so!
Last Updated March 3, 2024