Use of Supports Among College Students with Disabilities and Special Needs

A new NCES report, Use of Supports among Students with Disabilities and Special Needs in College, investigates whether students informed colleges of their disabilities or special needs and who received accommodations and services for them. It also describes whether students used academic support services, sought help, or enrolled in remedial courses during college. The report finds— About a third of students who responded that they had a disability during college informed their college of their disability. While a similar percentage of students who were enrolled in 4-year and 2-year colleges and reported a disability while attending college informed their college of their disability, a higher percentage of students at 4-year colleges reported receiving support from their college for their disability. Students who reported having a disability while attending college requested help and used academic services at a higher rate than students who did not report a disability in college. This Data Point uses data from the High School Longitudinal Study of 2009 (HSLS:09), a national study of more than 23,000 ninth-graders in 2009. Students answered surveys between 2009 and 2016.