Supporting students with intellectual disability at university

Australians with disability have the right to access all levels of education on an equal basis and without discrimination. This right is stated in the UN Convention on the Rights of People with Disability. However, at the moment young people with intellectual disability do not have many opportunities to attend university. The research team wanted to know more about two programs run by universities that support the inclusion of students with intellectual disability – Flinders University’s ‘Up the Hill Project’ and the University of Sydney’s ‘Uni2Beyond’ program. This project looked at what these programs can show us about including people with intellectual disability more in Australian higher education.

The research team employed two co-researchers with intellectual disability who are also alumni of the two higher education programs studied. They played central roles and shared decision-making power in:

Recruiting and interviewing participants
Developing and implementing case studies from interviews
Developing easy-read consent and information sheets
Recruiting and preparing advisory groups
Sharing research outputs, including presenting at two national conferences
Actively contributing to collaborative research meetings.

An Expert Advisory Committee for the research project included seven more alumni of the two programs. The committee played a leading role in developing best practices for inclusive higher education and sharing the research findings.

See infographics below for a visual summary of the project's findings.

Program data

Students in the programs were mostly young (18-25) and middle- or upper-class
Average enrolments across both programs is less than 10 students per year
Numbers are limited by available funding
Keeping detailed and accurate records about people with intellectual disability from a range of backgrounds is important

Interviews

Mostly positive experiences
Students enjoy learning and being able to choose what to learn
Students experience social development and inclusion
Students go on to further opportunities after graduating (e.g. paid employment; further study)
Some students found it hard to make friends and felt excluded from mainstream university life
Some students reported lack of post-program direction, support and planning

Further research is needed into facilitating meaningful social inclusion.

The findings from this research will be shared widely through:

Two Australian roundtables with representatives from Australian universities and key higher education stakeholders
National Position Paper to influence government policy
Community of Practice on inclusive universities for people with intellectual disability
A guide for universities on best practices for running an inclusive program
Program student stories in Easy English summaries, fact sheets, infographics, videos
Three peer reviewed academic articles will be published

Resources

Demographic data (infographic)

Student experiences (infographic)

Positives and challenges (infographic)

Viewpoint: Australia's obligations to include people with intellectual disability in higher education

Easy read position paper - people with intellectual disability going to university

University for people with intellectual disability – a national position paper

Project Team

Dr Nikki Wedgwood, The University of Sydney
A/Prof Mary-Ann O’Donovan, Centre for Disability Studies
Angela Ho, Centre for Disability Studies
Greta Westermann, Centre for Disability Studies
Dr Fiona Rillotta, Flinders University
Matthew Turnbull, Flinders University
Nadia Willis, Flinders University