Characteristics of Two-Year College Students on the Autism Spectrum and Their Support Services Experiences

Approximately 80% of youth on the autism spectrum in the U.S. who attend college will attend a 2-year college at some point in their postsecondary education. These community-based colleges are universally-accessible educational institutions which offer both academic and vocational courses and are experienced in teaching diverse learners who may require developmental academic support. This study used nationally-representative survey data from the National Longitudinal Transition Study-2 to describe the characteristics and services experiences of young adults on the autism spectrum who attended postsecondary education within eight years after high school, focusing on those who attended a 2-year college only. Significantly more (61.5%) who attended 2-year colleges had little to no trouble conversing or performing functional skills like counting change (64.6%) compared to 36.6% and 36.8%, respectively, of those who had no postsecondary education. Significantly more (85.7%) 2-year college attenders were able to navigate to places outside the home, while 43.9% of those with no postsecondary education were able to navigate. High school extracurricular participation was common (93.8%) among 2-year college attenders compared to 74.4% of youth who attended vocational/technical education and 58.5% of those who had no postsecondary education. Over half took vocational courses at 2-year colleges, while one-quarter pursued academic study. Half attended full-time. Less than half (48.6%) of those who disclosed their disability to the school reported receiving services, accommodations, or other help. Most (87.3%) felt they received enough help, but fewer (68.0%) felt the services they received were useful. Future research should delineate specific needs of students with autism in 2-year college settings and identify what supports are needed to improve persistence and completion rates as well as rates of transition into 4-year college programs. [This article was published in "Autism Research and Treatment" v2015 article ID 39169 p1-10 2015.]