One prominent proposed reason for this limited success is that such student choose not to disclose their disability to college personnel. Most suggestions attribute this decision to issues of stigma, manifesting in self-misunderstanding and interpersonal misunderstanding (i.e. professors and peers believing them incapable of work/ less intellectually able given acknowledgement of disability). Only 35.5% of students with learning disabilities considered themselves having disabilities and chose to report it.

Reasons for Limited Success of Students with Learning Disabilities: Stigma

A second suggestion for limited success are inadequate transition services, including self-advocacy preparation, from high school into postsecondary education, especially for students with disabilities.

Reasons for Limited Success of Students with Learning Disabilities: Inadequate Transition Services

- Stigma
- Inadequate Transition Services

***Both factors are theorized to affect students’ decisions regarding whether and when to seek services in university.

University of Notre Dame

NLTS and NLTS-2 shows a matriculation of students with learning disabilities into postsecondary education rose from 11.4% in 1990 to 34.5% in 2005. These students’ success have been notably limited given a 70% dropout rate, lower GPAs, and enrollment in easier programs compared to their non-disabled counterparts.

Learning Disability and Postsecondary Education

Lightner, K. L., Kipps-Vaughan, D., Schulte, T., & Trice, A. D. (2012). Reasons University Students with a Learning Disability Wait to Seek Disability Services. Journal of Postsecondary Education and Disability, 25(2), 145–159. 

Reasons University Students with a Learning Disability Wait to Seek Disability Services

Possible Reasons for Limited Success of Students with Learning Disabilities

Interviews were conducted among 42 students with learning disabilities (LD), which involved asking about their reasons for and for not seeking services and their experiences underlying their transition into college.

Methods for Researching Reasons University Students with a Learning Disability Wait to Seek Disability Services

The number of students with disabilities that go into college has increased substantially in the last 25 years. However, despite such optimistic rates, many barriers to education for disabled students hinder their progress and success in obtaining a degree. In order to identify means of supporting such students in their college journey, it is pertinent to study their perspectives and experiences regarding collegiate preparation, services, and support from their families.

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