Employability for UK University Students and Graduates on the Autism Spectrum: Mobilities and Materialities

Abstract

This article examines the transition from higher education to employment for autistic university students and recent graduates. This study has particular significance given that increasing numbers of autistic young people are entering higher education across the globe yet employability outcomes are typically some of the worst of any disabled student group. The article draws on qualitative data from twenty-one semistructured interviews with autistic students and graduates and sixteen focus groups with 58 community stakeholders, including parents, public servants, university careers advisors and disability support workers. Analysis of these data, through a mobilities paradigm, indicate four themes (1) employment (im)mobilities; (2) inaccessible recruitment processes; (3) embodied materialities and employment; and (4) resourcing employment mobilities. The article makes a significant contribution to the field in arguing that autistic graduates are at a disadvantage in terms of accessing meaningful employment and indicating the human and non-human actors and actants that influence their outcomes.

Parity of participation for autistic students: Mapping provision across UK higher education institutions

“…The apparent emphasis on getting students into university and focusing on academic support could be interpreted as a pragmatic choice. It suggests that institutions are being driven by the widening participation agenda but have put in place much less provision to enable their autistic students' success on completion of their courses (Vincent, 2020). Only ten universities across the UK reported offering employment support, despite the fact that this group has the highest levels of unemployment of any disabled group following graduation (Coney and Allen, 2019).…”

Students and graduates with autism: perceptions of support when preparing for transition from university to work

“…Our study contributes to the existing literature related to post-secondary transition for individuals with autism (e.g. Cashin 2018;Elias and White 2018;Lambe et al 2019;Vincent 2019Vincent , 2020 by widening the perspective to specifically include students' and graduates' perceptions about employment support related to the transition from university to work. We discovered that the support within university structures was not meeting students' individual needs and that caring relationships were the most favourable supporting factors.…”

“…Both these main themes shared a significant feature related to individualisation: participants had expectations of individualised support, which was also related to perceived supporting factors and shortcomings in those. Such lack of adjustment can lead to an unsuccessful transition consisting of poor employment outcomes, feelings of isolation, and jeopardising the overall quality of life (e. g. Hendricks and Wehman 2009;Moss, Mandy, and Howlin 2017;Pesonen 2016;Pesonen, Kontu, and Pirttimaa 2015;Rogge and Janssen 2019;Vincent 2020).…”

“…These studies reported on the importance of individualised support prior, during and beyond the transition from university to the workforce. A recent study by Vincent (2020) recognised the potential that career advisors and academic staff could have to help students' transition into employment, as the students reported that support was often too general and was not aimed at those with autism.…”

Stakeholders’ views on effective employment support strategies for autistic university students and graduates entering the world of work

“…For example, working part-time when they would prefer full-time employment (National Autistic Society, 2016) or in low-level rather than graduate posts in their field (Baldwin et al, 2014). Others are mal-employed, where the requirements of the post are inconsistent with their skill set (Association of Graduate Careers Advisory Services, 2019; Baldwin et al, 2014;Vincent, 2020) or are unable to find any paid work in their field of expertise. Barriers to graduate employment may be further complicated due to intersectional impacts with factors such as race or gender (Hayward et al, 2018).…”