The Video Relay Service (RS) targets deaf or hard-of-hearing students – users of Greek Sign Language (GSL) and students with speech disability or severe dysarthria and generally those who cannot use the phone for interpersonal communication. RS provides remote interpersonal communication in real-time with fellow students, faculty members/members of the teaching staff and the administrative staff of the NKUA. The RS is supported by a GSL interpreter and operates in the following ways:
- via video telephony (video relay service): the student, who is a GSL user, communicates with the RS using GSL through an internet video conferencing application and the interpreter translates his/her message orally and in real-time to the interlocutor and vice versa. In case of hard-of-hearing students the RS offers auxiliary support facilitating the communication between the student and his/her interlocutor through lipreading. This can be combined with text relay service.
- via text telephony (text relay service): the student communicates with the RS sending text messages from his/her computer and the interpreter translates the written message orally and in real-time to the interlocutor and vice versa.