The best way to visit ENHANCE is to attend one of the Ramapo College Open Houses, which take place every Fall and Spring semester. At the Open House, you will meet ENHANCE staff, take a college tour, and see what the college has to offer.

Students can apply to the ENHANCE Program once they have applied to Ramapo College of New Jersey. Students must commit to Ramapo College in order to be considered for acceptance to the ENHANCE Program. Click here for Admissions.

Students are admitted on a first-come, first-served basis. We make every attempt to let you know within about four weeks after the completion of the interview and upon receipt of all required documentation.

Students are accepted into ENHANCE based on several factors:

• Motivation to attend college and desire to take advantage of what Ramapo has to offer.
• Willingness and commitment to participate in ENHANCE meetings and their comfort participating in group meetings with others on the autism spectrum.
• College readiness

• Does the student want to be in college?
• Will the student let us know if they are having issues on campus?
• In classrooms and group settings:
  • Can the student respectfully participate in conversations with others who hold different opinions
  • Is the student able to manage frustrations appropriately?
  • Can the student follow directions?
• Will students speak to professors when they have questions about class material or grades?
• Will students attend tutoring or office hours for extra help when needed?
• Will students check their ramapo.edu email at least twice per day.
• Will students attend all weekly ENHANCE meetings?
• Does student wake up independently without assistance?
• Is student able to complete activities of daily living, such as doing laundry, taking medication, and maintaining personal hygiene.

Residence Life handles housing placements. Students will not be placed with other ENHANCE students unless both specifically make that request.

Single rooms are a medical accommodation through the Office of Specialized Services.

Peer Mentors and students have the opportunity to meet during the ENHANCE Orientation. If there is mutual interest and/or a connection, students and peer mentors can request to be paired together. ENHANCE staff will make every effort to match students with peer mentors based on personality and interests.

ENHANCE is a year-long commitment. We have seen students benefit most from the program when they participate for the entire year, as a single semester only provides a limited time to fully adjust to the experience of college and take advantage of what the program has to offer.

ENHANCE provides opportunities for students to get together several times during the week (Social Event, Academic Workshop, Connections) which encourages consistency and reinforces a sense of community. Weekly group meetings offer students a chance to take a break from their academics to play games, discover shared interests, and discuss topics relevant to their college experience. We also have off- campus excursions and end of semester parties. Please note that although we provide the setting and the opportunities, we cannot guarantee friendships.

There is an extra cost to participate in the ENHANCE Program. ENHANCE has one individual counseling meeting, 2 individual peer mentor meetings, and 3 group meetings each week. Our goal is success at Ramapo College and in order to fully benefit from the ENHANCE Program, we strongly recommend students to attend and participate in all meetings.

This is your student’s responsibility. We send reminders for all ENHANCE meetings and activities. If we notice that we haven’t seen a student in awhile, we will make additional attempts to reach out and contact them.

The goal of the ENHANCE Program is to encourage self-advocacy and we will only send emails to your student. You and your student can decide how much information you would like to share with each other. If you have a question or concern, please include your student in the email and we will include them in the reply.

ENHANCE does not provide updates to parents regarding their student’s academic progress. We do not have access to real time grades and rely on students to self-report and monitor their own grades. Students are encouraged to reach out to their professor if they have any concerns regarding grading. Parents are recommended to maintain open communication with students about their academic progress.

We do not have access to this information. During our weekly counseling meetings, we ask students how they are doing in class and encourage open dialogue. Peer mentors also ask about class progress and share their own. Some professors may issue a flag on CONNECT if classes are missed and if we see a flag, we reach out to the student.

ENHANCE does not directly review student’s homework. If a student shares with us, ENHANCE staff and peer mentors can help look over assignments to ensure students have an understanding of what is being asked. We also encourage students to reach out to their professors and connect them with campus resources to further support their learning such as the Center for Reading and Writing and the STEM Center

While ENHANCE cannot guarantee that your student will earn a specific grade, we will support them throughout their college journey. Academic success is influenced by many factors, including individual effort and engagement with course material and professors. However, we will focus on helping students develop self-advocacy skills, connecting them to campus resources, and offering guidance in navigating their academic experience.

*Although you may be covering your child’s college expenses, students have full control over adding, dropping, or withdrawing from courses, and parental approval is not required.

College is not the same as high school and faculty will not respond to parents. If you have a concern, please encourage your student to speak to their professor, send an email or speak to ENHANCE about it and we will advise.

ENHANCE actively seeks opportunities for student employment and internships. We connect students to workshops for career readiness and notify them of offers from companies with neurodivergent initiatives. We help students connect to and prepare for on-campus Job Fairs and assist students with connecting to the Cahill Career Center.

ENHANCE adheres to the confidentiality policy of Counseling Services and will not share information about a student without their permission except in cases of serious psychiatric emergencies. In such cases, ENHANCE will contact parents. An emergency may include situations in which a student poses a threat to themselves or others. If you believe there is information about your child that we should be aware of, please reach out to us so we can address it with them.

Unlike high school, where parents and different departments can share information freely, colleges require students’ permission to communicate with parents and to share information between departments. Students will sign the consent forms at the ENHANCE orientation. However, students still need to be involved in all communication between ENHANCE and their parents.