Postsecondary Education: Autistic Collegians’ Experiences of Success

A research project seeking to improve postsecondary experiences and outcomes for autistic college students has concluded for 2022.  Data collection will resume in the Fall of 2023.

About the PEACES Project

The ultimate goal of this project is to improve postsecondary experiences and outcomes for autistic college students. Our two-phase participatory research project will highlight autistic students’ definitions of success and identify key factors affecting their ability to thrive while in college. We will take a holistic approach to explore intersections between multiple domains in these students’ lives: personal, social, psychological, academic, and professional. We will build a large, diverse sample of autistic undergraduates in the United States, with a special emphasis on students who have been frequently marginalized in educational practice and scholarly research: women, racially minoritized, LGBTQ+, and community college students. These data will become the foundation for a nationwide, longitudinal, publicly-accessible database from which future scholars will conduct wide-ranging research designed to improve autistic students’ personal well-being and collegiate success.

The project is receiving financial support from the FAR Fund and the Frist Center for Autism and Innovation at Vanderbilt University. This study has been approved by Florida State University’s Institutional Review Board (Study #: 00003127).

Questions?

Contact lead researchers Dr. Bradley E. Cox (brad.cox@fsu.edu) or Dr. Brett Ranon Nachman (bnachman@uark.edu).