Students with physical disabilities attend college at significantly lower rates, and have a lower college graduation rates, than students without disabilities. Research addressing graduation rates of students with physical disabilities indicates that wheelchair basketball athletes graduate at significantly higher rates than students with physical disabilities who do not participate in the sport (Illinois by the Numbers, 2013; Meet the Movin' Mays, 2011; UA in the News, 2013; Wheelchair Athletics, 2013). The current body of research literature does not adequately explain what might be serving as effective supports and resources for these students, and whether participation in adapted athletics might be a key to retaining students with physical disabilities to successful completion of degrees. The purpose of this study was to explore the experience of athletes participating in intercollegiate wheelchair basketball. The goal was to develop a rich description of the experiences of this population and describe their perceptions of how participation in wheelchair basketball influenced changes in self-advocacy and independence. The findings of this study suggest that inter-collegiate wheelchair basketball influences positive changes in self-advocacy and independence. For students with disabilities who have not participated in wheelchair basketball prior to involvement in collegiate teams, these changes in self-advocacy and independence were more evident than in those students who played prior to college participation. Furthermore, participants with more physically limiting disabilities expressed a greater change in self-advocacy and independence than those with less physically limiting disabilities. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]