You are not required to disclose any information regarding your disability on your resume.

Preparing to enter the job world can be daunting. The information below is here to help guide you through searching for internships and jobs, as well as to remind you of your legal rights as an individual with a disability. 

Platforms

These sources specifically serve individuals with disabilities and can help you identify employment options. 

• Career Opportunities for Students with Disabilities (COSD): Identifies innovative methods of recruiting and hiring college graduates with disabilities, including creation of internship opportunities.
• National Center On Workforce and Disability: Works to increase employment options for career seekers with disabilities through a flexible blend of strategies, services, and supports.
• Think Beyond the Label (TBTL): Uses a uniform national infrastructure in partnership with Health and Human Services that connects businesses to qualified candidates with disabilities. 
• Lime Connect: Attracts, prepares, and connects high potential university students and alumni with disabilities for scholarships, internships, and full-time careers with some of the world's leading corporations.

Reasonable Accommodations

This section serves to remind you about your rights surrounding employers and accommodations. 

• Employers are required to provide reasonable accommodations in the job application process to ensure that qualified applicants have an equal opportunity to be considered for a job.
• Accommodations for interviews might include but are not limited to: 
  • An accessible interview location for people with mobility impairments
  • A sign language interpreter for a person who is deaf
  • A reader or braille options for a person who is blind
  • Accommodated testing for a person with a learning disability
• Job Accommodation Network (JAN) provides a database of accommodation examples based on functional limitations stemming from disability.

Interviews provide an opportunity for you to show off your skills and qualifications to a potential employer. Listed below is some information to help ensure that your interview goes smoothly and successfully!

Interview Spaces 

• If you are interviewing on campus in our Interview Center:
  • We comply with ADA requirements in our space. Don’t hesitate to contact us directly at handshake@jmu.edu prior to your interview if you have questions.
• If you are interviewing elsewhere: 
  • There is usually a point of contact listed for accessibility—or HR—in outreach emails or in the job description. If that information is available, start there.
  • If there is not a point of contact provided, you can ask the recruiter about accommodations without phrasing it as a “disclosure.” For instance, if you’re interviewing in a building you’re unfamiliar with and are nervous about identifying an accessible route, you can ask for directions that include elevator locations without feeling pressured to explain why you want that information included. 
  • Employment offices and interview facilities are expected to be accessible to people using wheelchairs and others with mobility impairments, however you may choose to ask about accessibility prior to your interview date.

• You are not required to disclose your disability during the interview process.
  • Under the ADA, employers may not ask disability-related questions until after they’ve made a conditional job offer.
  • An employer may not ask a job applicant about the existence, nature, or severity of a disability.
  • Applicants may be asked about their ability to perform specific job functions.
• You may ask about sick time and medical benefits during the negotiation process without feeling obligated to explain why that’s an area you’re particularly interested in.

Many people with invisible disabilities may feel obligated to inform their employer about their disability at the time of their interview. Remember that  you are not obligated to disclose. If you do choose to disclose, provide basic information about your condition, your functional limitations, and what accommodations you may need. The resources linked below may help you decide whether or not to disclose and how to disclose if you choose to do so. 

• JAN’s Disability Disclosure  dos and don’ts
• Interactive Autism Network’s “To Tell or Not to Tell” disclosure article 

Below are additional resources that may help you along the way: 

• JMU ODS: Contains a variety of resources for students with disabilities at JMU and beyond.
• Scholarships & Grants for Students with Disabilities: Discover additional financial resources. 
• Job Accommodation Network: Explore examples of reasonable workplace accommodations. 

Contact our Liaison to Office of Disability Services.