With an increase in the diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder in the United States, many of whom have higher intellectual ability, there is a predicted increase in the number of college-bound students. Affected young adults face a "Services Cliff" as they transition into adulthood. Our study examined a nationally represented sample of…

Postsecondary education (PSE) programs serving individuals with intellectual disabilities (ID) aim to improve life outcomes by increasing skills in three key areas: academics, independent living, and employment. To ensure that PSE programs are successful, ongoing evaluations are necessary. It is particularly important to gather parental…

Autistic people, by definition, differ in social behavior from non-autistic individuals. One characteristic common to many autistic people is a special interest in a particular topic--something spoken about with such frequency and intensity that it may be stigmatized by non-autistic peers. We investigated college students' interest in interacting…

Young autistic Australians are less likely to attend higher education and have lower employment rates than non-autistic Australians (in: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Survey of disability, ageing and carers Australia: Summary of Findings 2018. Australian Bureau of Statistics, Canberra, 2019a). Few studies have examined post-school outcomes…

Transitioning to post-secondary education is often challenging for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). To address this, Florida International University, specifically FIU Embrace, piloted the Embrace Mentoring Program (EMP), which provided unique role-specific workshops to both faculty/staff mentors, and student…

The literature on tools of attitudes towards ASD was limited. This study is the first to examine the factor structure and psychometric properties of the multidimensional attitudes scale toward persons with disabilities (MAS) in a sample of Chinese college students (N = 1002, 32.10% males). Confirmatory factor analysis supported the G-MAS-R model's…

The current study explored whether people who camouflage autistic traits are more likely to experience thwarted belongingness and suicidality, as predicted by the Interpersonal Psychological Theory of Suicide (IPTS). 160 undergraduate students (86.9% female, 18-23 years) completed a cross-sectional online survey from 8th February to 30th May 2019…

Speech-language pathology and special education graduate student teams participated in an intensive summer practicum for social communication skills with children with autism spectrum disorders, utilizing a transdisciplinary approach that aligned to the frameworks utilized for implementation science. Questionnaires measuring transdisciplinary…

Transition-age youth with autism (TAY-ASD) experience poor employment outcomes and gaps in services that could assist them in securing jobs. Vocational rehabilitation (VR) is a source of public assistance for people with disabilities seeking employment and TAY-ASD are a growing segment of VR service users. Postsecondary education (PSE) is…

Applying to university can be an anxiety-provoking time for many autistic students, though enrolment can be increased by actively involving them in transition planning. We provide an evaluation of a transition to university pilot programme (Autism Summer School) for autistic students (16-19 years) who are seeking to apply/attend university. The…

The university experience of students with ASD was explored through a qualitative study of 11 former university students and six significant others from Australia and New Zealand. A range of key issues were identified including difficulties encountered when studying, reasons for completion and non-completion, supports used, and coping strategies…

This is the first longitudinal study to quantitatively evaluate changes in social network structure (SNS) and perceived social support (PSS) amongst first-year students on the autism spectrum (n = 21) and typically developing (TD; n = 182) students transitioning to university. The relative impact of changes in SNS/PSS, students' social anxiety and…

In order to survey extant literature examining support specifically for postsecondary students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), a systematic review of the literature was conducted through a synthesis of an established protocol of quality indicators for special education research and the methodology for PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for…

This study examined the perception of an ASD label compared to Asperger's syndrome or no diagnosis. Seventy-one undergraduates read an adapted vignette (Ohan et al. J Autism Dev Disord 45:3384-3389, 2015) about an undergraduate with ASD, Asperger's Syndrome, or No Diagnosis. Participants also completed questionnaires. More positive ratings emerged…

An on-line survey of 102 (51 females; undergraduate and graduate) university students with ASD across Australia and New Zealand examined student characteristics and satisfaction with academic and non-academic supports. A broad range of disciplines were studied, and the participants' reported strengths included a passion for learning, strong…