When I was very young, a psychiatrist ran a battery of tests and told my parents that I had a very high IQ and that I should start school a year early. Although I was supposed to be considered "gifted" I always struggled in school, but with the help of tutors and my parents, I always made average grades, though it was not easy. I was not diagnosed with ADD until I was 20. I was a senior in college at the time and was almost finished with my undergrad education, so aside from medication, I was not aware of special accommodations like extended time and alternate testing environment. However, after my first semester of law school and making the worst grades I had ever made in my life, a number of professors, after learning of my ADD and reviewing my exams with me, suggested that I apply for special accommodations. Ever since then, I have had the extended time and alternate testing environment, and my grades have substantially improved.

However, as I enter my third year of law school, I have started the process of applying for the Bar Exam in my state and have learned that in order to apply for special accommodations, I will have to get a whole battery of psychological testing done to submit with my application. I understand this requirement (which is costing me over $2,000), however, I have also been informed that very few people are actually granted special accommodations for the bar exam and that because I was not diagnosed until later in life and because I am doing well in law school (which is due in large part to the special accommodations I have been given) it is unlikely that I will receive the special accommodations, even if the psychological testing and evaluations confirm my ADD diagnosis and the need for special accommodations.

I feel as though I am being penalized not only because I was not diagnosed late in life, but also because I have worked hard to get good grades in law school. Apparently, if I was on the verge of flunking out of law school, I would have a better chance of receiving the accommodations.

Since all of this has started, I have been researching Adult ADD and have come to realize that many women like myself have suffered for years before being diagnosed. I was just wondering if anyone else out there has encountered a similar problem with late diagnosis and receiving special accommodations for graduate and/or professional testing and has any suggestions for dealing with this problem.

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