Find the applicable documentation guidance
D&A's documentation page links different guidance by disability category, including psychological disabilities. Ask D&A which guidance fits your request if you are uncertain. Review the current linked requirements with the appropriate treating professional instead of assuming a previous school letter or a brief appointment summary will meet them.
Make a preparation note describing the practical academic barriers you want to discuss, the existing records you have and any approaching course deadlines. Keep that note for the university and clinician conversations. This guide does not reproduce the linked psychological-disability evaluation criteria or decide what evaluation you need.
Sources: UT Austin Disability and Access: Documentation Guidelines
Submit through D&A's registration route
The registration page asks students to include their name, UT EID, email and phone number with documentation and lists the available submission routes. D&A reviews the material and may request additional information. If eligible, the student receives instructions for an appointment with an access coordinator.
Before sending sensitive records, confirm the current destination and ask how to resolve any missing information. Keep a copy of what you submitted and the date. If a treating office is sending something, ask who will confirm receipt; requesting a letter and D&A receiving it are not the same completed step.
Prepare for the access-coordinator conversation
D&A describes a meeting to discuss access needs and possible accommodations. Bring your questions about the actual course situation: what is difficult to access, what you have already tried and what implementation questions you need to understand. The coordinator can explain the university's process; a treatment provider does not decide the academic arrangement.
Leave the meeting with a record of what was decided, any information still needed and the next portal task. If you are also considering dropping courses or withdrawing, ask about that separate process rather than assuming an accommodation request performs the withdrawal steps.
Follow through on approved letters each semester
UT's instructions say students need an active D&A file and request accommodation letters through the student portal for each semester they need them. The page explains that instructors receive notifications and that students should discuss how the approved accommodations will work in each course. Registration alone does not complete those course-level steps.
Keep a private course checklist: letter requested, instructor contacted, implementation discussed and remaining question. If an arrangement is not working or your needs change, contact the access coordinator. Use the current D&A instructions for follow-up timing and for services that require a separate request, such as interpreting or captioning.
Sources: UT Austin Disability and Access: Using Accommodations and Services
Your next-step checklist
- Ask D&A which documentation guidance applies and review the current requirements.
- Identify existing records and ask the treating office what it can appropriately supply.
- Submit through the current D&A route with the requested student identifiers.
- Track review, any request for more information and the coordinator appointment.
- For approved accommodations, request semester letters and discuss implementation with instructors.
Keep personal, insurance and medical information in the appropriate organization’s approved secure channel.
Common questions
Does a mental health diagnosis automatically establish an accommodation?
No. D&A reviews documentation and discusses access needs through its registration process. Ask that office what is needed; a diagnosis or clinician letter alone is not an approval.
Sources: UT Austin Disability and Access: How to Register; UT Austin Disability and Access: Documentation Guidelines
Am I finished after D&A approves accommodations?
There are further steps. UT instructs students to request accommodation letters for the semester and follow up with instructors about implementation in each course.
Sources: UT Austin Disability and Access: Using Accommodations and Services
What if I am unsure whether to register?
D&A's registration page directs students with eligibility questions to contact the office during its drop-in hours. Use that route to discuss the process before assuming that a specific document or evaluation is required.
Sources and verification
The sources below support the administrative information in this guide. Follow the responsible organization’s current instructions when requirements, forms or contact routes change.