The transition from high school to adulthood can be a daunting time for any student, but it can be especially challenging for students with intellectual disability and autism. These students often face a number of barriers to success, including limited access to effective college and career planning.
The Moving Transition Forward project at Think College aimed to identify areas of strength and needing improvement in existing transition practices for students with intellectual disability and autism. Funded by Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Special Education Research (NCSER), the project team looked at data from two sources to compare and contrast conventional and college-based transition services. Two newly released journal articles highlight some of the findings of the project.
In an article now available as an advance online publication in the Journal of Intellectual Disabilities, the study team explored the preparation experiences for postsecondary education among youth with intellectual disability and autism using the NLTS 2012 dataset, comparing their experiences with those of youth in other disability groups. Across the board, the team found relatively low access to most postsecondary education preparation activities for youth with intellectual disability and autism. Nine of the eleven postsecondary education preparation variables we identified in the NLTS 2012 dataset were experienced by fewer than one-third of youth with intellectual disability and autism. Although there were few differences in access to college preparation of youth with intellectual disability and autism compared to those with autism alone, there was significantly lower access when contrasting the college preparation activities of youth with intellectual disability and autism to youth with other disabilities or without disability.
Another study provided a more optimistic picture; in an article published earlier this year in Inclusion, the study team looked at the employment preparation experiences of youth with intellectual disability and autism who received college-based transition services. This study used data from college-based transition programs included in the Transition and Postsecondary Programs for Students with Intellectual Disability (TPSID) model demonstration program to provide a national picture of the employment preparation activities and paid employment outcomes of students with intellectual disability and autism attending college-based transition programs. Students who attended college-based transition programs were found to have engaged in a wide array of employment preparation activities including participation in career development experiences and career-related courses and also received employment-related program supports. The findings suggest college-based transition programs may have several advantages, including a focus on early paid employment, that could lead to later post-school employment success. These findings also underscore that early paid employment is a very strong predictor of post-school employment outcomes in college-based transition programs, just as it is in other models of transition services.
The Moving Transition Forward project provided valuable information about the current state of transition services for students with intellectual disability and autism and identified some promising practices that can be used to improve these services. The project found there is a significant gap between what we know are research-based predictors of post-school success for students with intellectual disability and autism and the transition services that they are actually receiving. College-based transition services emerged as a way to increase access to research-based transition practices that can lead to successful post-school outcomes. The project also raised awareness about the need for more research on transition services for students with intellectual disability and autism.
What can you do to support a successful transition to adult life?
If you are an educator or transition professional, here are some ways you can support young adults with intellectual disability to have a successful transition to adult life:
- Talk to students about college. Encourage them to explore their options and help them set college as a goal in their transition planning.
- Advocate for all students to have access to college preparation activities and services that are offered in high school. Even if there are transition fairs for students with disabilities, these students should also have access to college fairs and other activities that take place.
- Ensure students with intellectual disability and autism have the opportunity for paid employment experiences before they leave high school.
- Find out about college-based transition programs for students with intellectual disability in your area. If there isn’t one already, start a conversation with a local college to get a partnership started!
Want to learn more?
- Head to the Moving Transition Forward project page to learn more about the project including the studies that were conducted, the datasets we used, and our publications.
Looking for information on transition to adult life?
- This handy "hyperdoc" lists the most up-to-date and critical resources from Think College on the transition to college for students with intellectual disability. We’ve also got a dedicated page for transition professionals on the “Think Higher. Think College” campaign website.
- Read the two new journal articles
- Grigal, M., Papay, C., Migliore, A., Choiseul-Praslin, B., & Chen, J. (2023). Preparation for postsecondary education of transition aged youth with intellectual disability and autism spectrum disorder in the United States: An Analysis of data from the national longitudinal transition study 2012. Journal of Intellectual Disabilities, advanced online publication. https://doi.org/10.1177/17446295231220093
- Papay, C., Grigal, M., & Choiseul-Praslin, B. (2023). Employment Preparation Experiences of Youth With Intellectual Disability and Autism Who Attend College-Based Transition Programs. Inclusion, 11(2), 118-134.