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College students with disabilities have lower enrollment and completion rates than their peers without disabilities. But a new ɫ��ɫ, study found that some students make good use of support systems, study skills, coping mechanisms and awareness of their disabilities to succeed despite their challenges. 

“These findings offer new insights for scholars, disability advocates and educators,” said Lauren Lindstrom, professor in the School of Education at ɫ��ɫ and lead author of the study. 

She and her colleagues uncovered that all participants in the study were highly motivated to enroll in postsecondary education, accessed a set of services and support that facilitated their academic progress, and demonstrated critical individual attributes, such as disability awareness, study management and persistence, despite personal stress and adversity. These three key themes were present in various iterations across all participants and interwoven throughout their experiences in higher education, Lindstrom said. 

Research participants shared 5 common attributes

Through in-depth interviews with 24 high-achieving female students at a regional Australian university, researchers sought to identify why these students were succeeding in college. 

and her colleagues,  (Charles Sturt University) and , of ɫ��ɫ, began examining the experiences of women with disabilities while conducting a broader study on resilience, career optimism, and academic satisfaction among disabled undergraduate students. They quickly uncovered that while many women with disabilities encounter additional challenges at the college level — such as low expectations, discrimination, and gendered misconceptions of disability — some maintain high levels of academic success.

These five attributes offer new insight into how academic institutions can better support all students with disabilities, researchers said. By tailoring resources and services to address disabled students’ strategies for high achievement, universities can bolster student success and remove learning barriers before they arise.

Navigating education with advocacy,  awareness

Lindstrom and her colleagues observed disabled women’s awareness of their own strengths and needs when asking about their motivation for enrolling in higher education. For many, disability made the choice to attend university feel more purposeful. Some sought career opportunities and financial stability, while others were motivated by personal fulfillment and self-realization. 

One participant described her decision after receiving a life-changing diagnosis. “I thought that I was not going to be able to do anything with my life that I had previously planned,” she said. “I decided that I would do the things that I wanted to do, and I wouldn’t let some stupid disease change that.”

Students’ recognition that they were entering university while living with a disability also strengthened their desire to seek out formal and informal resources once on campus. Repeatedly, participants shared that they spoke with their professors, took advantage of tutoring and academic writing services, stayed in contact with disability services, and enrolled in online classes when possible. Just as importantly, they built and maintained support networks — friends, family, and peers who continued to encourage them when the demands of college became overwhelming.

The women’s confidence in using both on- and off-campus resources also reflected their strong problem-solving skills. They quickly adapted to demanding course requirements, leveraging study and time management techniques to complete assignments. No matter the strategy, students made sure to build in time for self-care and to manage personal responsibilities such as child care. “My partner and his mum are fantastic looking after my son while I’m at uni,” one woman said. “That makes it much easier, because I don’t have to worry about him while I’m there.”

How universities can better support disabled students

By recognizing and fostering these five attributes that support success, universities can move beyond a deficit-based view of disability and instead celebrate the resilience and achievements of their individual students across diverse backgrounds who have excelled despite systemic barriers. An anti-deficit framework offers universities a powerful way forward — one that not only addresses accessibility gaps but also builds on the strengths students already bring to campus.

Lindstrom and her team also recommend that academic institutions put these insights into practice in three ways:

• Develop disability training for academics and focus on disability awareness, accommodation policies, and incorporating universal design principles.
• Offer resilience training for university students with disabilities so that they can manage academic and personal challenges with even greater success.
• Cultivate comprehensive and flexible disability support services that accommodate on-campus and distance learners and offer expanded service hours.

“These findings must be considered in addressing gender and disability barriers and supporting higher education pathways for students with disabilities,” Lindstrom and her colleagues conclude.

Read  on the School of Education site.