ADHD In College Students

Working with Disability Services is our 9-5. And in the conversations we have with support staff, we’re often asked about ADHD in college students.

The number of students with ADHD seeking support is on the rise. In fact, ADHD now accounts for 25% of all conditions reported to Disability Service departments. So getting to grips with the condition and the difficulties it creates is the natural starting point for understanding how best to serve these students.

Of course, ADHD and ADD are separate diagnoses with differing symptoms. However, we’ve paired them together here as there are many commonalities between these conditions.

We want to make it easier to communicate the issues affected students and support staff face.

It’s estimated that around 4.4% of adults in the US have ADHD

Individuals with ADHD symptoms make up between 2 – 8% of the US student population

• Primary symptoms of ADHD include impulsivity, inattentiveness and hyperactivity
• These can lead to working memory impairment, feelings of restlessness and a risk of developing mental health conditions like depression
• Evidence suggests that female students experience these symptoms with more intensity than male students.

Students with ADHD have statistically lower GPA than students without. They’re also more likely to drop out of college.

Research shows that students with ADHD are also at greater risk of developing problems with alcohol and drug abuse than students without the condition.

Problems with studying include:

• Concentration
• Note taking
• Preparing for exams
• Organizational skills
• Time Management

As demonstrated, ADHD/ADD can have a series of potentially debilitating effects on students’ ability to learn. The question accommodations coordinators will naturally ask is how can we help reduce the impact in the classroom?

Thankfully, there are a number of solutions available to Disability Services to implement. Developments in technology have made accommodating students with this condition easier than ever before. We’d like to show you how.

If you’d like to know more about how specific conditions affect college students, read our posts on dyslexia in the classroom or the challenges still faced by students with physical disabilities.

• https://childmind.org/article/schools-driving-adhd-diagnoses/

• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4186490/

• https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/13632752.2018.1462974