Transition and Support Programs For College Students With Autism Spectrum Disorder

Abstract

Some colleges provide support to degree-seeking students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), beyond what is mandated under the Americans with Disabilities Act. It is not clear, however, how such support affects students’ overall college experiences. This study examines bachelor’s-degree-seeking students’ use of academic and social supports for students with ASD, their perceptions of how helpful these programs are to their development in areas where they need support to transition to and persist in college, and the relationship of these measures to students' adaptation to college. The study also examines the academic and social supports that programs offer through analysis of information available on 37 institutions' program websites. Further analyses are based on survey data from 20 students who participate in one of eight programs developed to support students with ASD at universities across the United States. Analyses yielded no evidence suggestive of a relationship between students’ use of supports and students’ adaptation to college, or between students’ perceptions of the helpfulness of their programs and students’ adaptation to college. Nonetheless, the findings indicate that students find these categories of supports to be at least somewhat helpful in and of themselves and to their development in areas of transition need and that students are adapting neutrally to positively to college in terms of academic adjustment, social adjustment, and life and career preparation. Finally, this study suggests that future research into the experiences of students with ASD in postsecondary education should carefully consider how the sociality of college students is gauged.