Paper short abstract:

Students with 'hidden' disabilities are often diagnosed at university. Our UCL-Chile-New Zealand study looks at the co-construction of hidden disabilities by students and university staff, institutional agendas and epistemic attitudes, and impacts on diagnosis, disclosure, help-seeking and support.

Paper long abstract:

Internationally, laws and statutes mandate inclusion for the disabled in all areas of life. Universities worldwide incorporate support services for students with special needs, which may include an orientation week before the first term begins. However, many disabling conditions are typically only diagnosed in people in their 20s, thus while students are already at university. This complicates the planning and provision of support services, particularly for the large and varied group of invisible or hidden disabilities, that is, disabilities with few visual clues that may therefore be unapparent to others. Students with hidden disabilities often face considerable challenges in navigating the demands of university social and academic life. Compared with students without disabilities they tend to have worse self-esteem, psychological problems, feelings of loneliness and isolation and lower expectations within and after education. They are at higher risk of dropping out of study or taking longer to complete their course. I am beginning research with collaborators in New Zealand and Chile to improve support for these students. London and New Zealand operate established inclusivity mandates for disability-friendly education, while Chile has only just introduced such mandates, based on the UK model. Our focus is the co-construction of hidden disabilities in higher education through communication between students with hidden disabilities, university-associated clinicians, disability services and academic staff and impacts on diagnosis, disclosure, help-seeking and support. Particular topics of interest are institutional agendas and epistemic attitudes. This talk will be illustrated by real examples. The speaker has two disabled children at university.