Graduate, Clinical, and Professional Students
Accommodations as a graduate student may look different than those accommodations used in undergraduate courses. General accommodation information is provided in the next section with additional, specific information related to your college or program. If you are seeking additional support beyond disability access, please visit our campus partners page.
If you completed your undergraduate work at Vanderbilt and used accommodations, you may not need to take any additional steps. Please log into the Commodore Access Portal and ensure your accommodations are correct.
At Vanderbilt, the Commodore Access Portal (CAP) is where the accommodation process begins and ends. You will use the CAP to request accommodations, request additional accommodations, view current accommodations, print or send accommodation letters to faculty, and schedule proctored exams.
Useful Links:
Requesting accommodations (incoming students)
Requesting additional accommodations (if you have already been approved for one or more accommodations)
Reporting temporary impairments
Requesting Assistive Technologies
Using the Student Access Proctoring Center
School Specific Information:
The Graduate School
Accommodation requests for students enrolled in graduate or professional programs are directed to the Student Access Office. Graduate and Professional students requesting accommodation will log into the Commodore Access Portal to submit the connection form and any relevant documentation. Once connected and an orientation is completed, the student may send an accommodation letter to their faculty member or their school’s designee. Graduate and Professional students should have an understanding that accommodations may be implemented differently in lab, clinical, or professional settings compared to that of the classroom. Additionally, dependent upon the setting, previously approved accommodations may not be reasonable. It is recommended to request and discuss any access concerns with Student Access as early as possible.
Graduate students (all PhD students, MA, MS, MFA, and MLAS) can contact Graduate and Postdoc Academic Success for assistance with communication, policies, and resources. Professional students (Divinity, Law, OGSM, MD, SOM (non-PhD), Nursing (non-PhD, Peabody (non-PhD/MS)) can reach out to the designee listed below within their respective school.
Any student seeking wellness support can contact Lisa Clapper, Director, Student Care Coordination. You may also visit our campus partners page.
For additional school specific information related to accommodations, please find your school below:
Stacey Satchell: Director, Graduate and Postdoc Academic Success
Lisa Clapper: Director, Student Care Coordination
Divinity
Accommodation requests for students enrolled in the Divinity School should be directed to the Student Access Office. Students requesting accommodation should log into the Commodore Access Portal to submit your connection form and any relevant documentation. Once connected and an orientation is completed, accommodation letters may be sent to the student’s faculty. Questions or concerns regarding accommodations or access should be directed to Student Access. If you need support beyond accommodations, you may also contact Angela Dillon, Director of Student Life and Spiritual Formation.
Law School
All accommodation letters are sent to Dean Meyers and Dean Kovash. Please do not share accommodation letters with your faculty. Once accommodations are approved, you may work with Dean Meyers and Dean Kovash for accommodation implementation. If you need support beyond accommodations, you may reach out to:
Owen School of Management
Accommodation requests for students enrolled in the Owen Graduate School of Management (OGSM) should be directed to the Student Access Office. Students requesting accommodation should log into the Commodore Access Portal to submit your connection form and any relevant documentation. Once connected and an orientation is completed, accommodation letters may be sent to the student’s faculty. Questions or concerns regarding accommodations or access should be directed to Student Access. If you need support beyond accommodations, you may reach out to the Owen Office of Academic and Student Affairs at OwenASA@vanderbilt.edu.
Peabody
Accommodation requests for students enrolled in Peabody Graduate and Professional programs should be directed to the Student Access Office. Students requesting accommodation should log into the Commodore Access Portal to submit the connection form and any relevant documentation. Once connected and an orientation is completed, accommodation letters may be sent to the student’s faculty. Questions or concerns regarding accommodations or access should be directed to Student Access. If a student needs academic support beyond accommodations, contact Dean Loss; PhD students can contact Dean Mancilla-Martinez. Dr. Hasina Mohyuddin, Assistant Dean of Peabody Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion and Dr. Meaghan Mundy, Assistant Dean, Student Engagement and Well-Being are available for identity and wellness support.
Additionally, visit Peabody Accessibility for up-to-date information regarding accessible entrances throughout the Peabody campus.
School of Nursing
Accommodations are commonly used in didactic and clinical settings. While some accommodations used in the didactic setting may not be reasonable in a clinical setting, conversations with Student Access should occur to ensure an accessible learning environment.
All SON accommodation letters are sent to Dean Lewis. Dean Lewis will then share the accommodation letter with the appropriate faculty member/preceptor/program coordinator etc. This process is done to eliminate missed communication between students and faculty regarding accommodation letters.
Accommodations may be implemented differently in each setting, whether didactic or clinical, depending upon the instructor. If any concerns arise regarding accessibility, please contact Student Access as soon as possible.
School of Medicine
Accommodations are commonly used in VUSM professional degree program learning settings. Different learning settings (e.g., didactic, clinical, lab, simulation, etc.) may require different accommodations. For example, some accommodations used in the didactic setting may not be reasonable in a clinical setting. Because of this, conversations with Student Access should occur as soon as a need is identified, to ensure an accessible learning environment.
All VUSM accommodation letters are sent to the student and the Associate Dean for Medical Student Affairs (Dean Fleming) for MD students, or the Assistant Dean for Health Sciences Education (Donna Rosenstiel) for the other School of Medicine Professional Degree programs . The dean will then share the accommodation letter with the appropriate program director/faculty member/preceptor/program manager/coordinator, etc. This process is done to facilitate communication between students and faculty regarding accommodation letters. Accommodations also may be implemented differently in various learning settings depending on the instructor. If any concerns arise regarding accessibility, please contact Student Access as soon as possible.