Hey Deaf Kid

National Technical Institute for the Deaf

When choosing a college, students who are deaf or hard-of-hearing can make the decision to go to a predominantly deaf college or enroll in special programs at another school. For those that choose the first option, the National Technical Institute for the Deaf is one of the most popular choices. Located in Rochester, New York in the Rochester Institute of Technology, the school currently has 1,200 deaf and hard-of-hearing students. 12,000 hearing students attend courses at other schools in RIT.This melding of environments, which allows students to interact with both deaf and hearing peers, all takes place within a protected suburban locale. The Institute was founded in 1965 and selected RIT the next year from a number of attractive locations. The combination of RIT’s recent move to a new campus and the progressive views of Rochester businessmen helped finalize the decision.Historically, NTID’s highest enrollment was in the mid-1980s, when students from the 1960s “rubella bulge” reached college age, resulting in enrollment of 1,358 students in 1984. 2008 enrollment was even higher, though, with a student body of 1,450. Students can choose from almost any major offered at RITover 200 programs in all. Student-teacher interaction is enhanced with the use of FM loop systems, real-time captionists, TTY pay phones, and of course sign-language-using teachers and staff members.Unlike traditional schools, NTID operates on a quarter system, so students don’t have to wait long before beginning their educational career. Classes start every September, December, March, and May.