This article uses 'wellbeing' as deployed within UK higher education as a starting point for examining the relationship between disability and the university. We explore various strands of scholarship that seek to critique wellbeing, universities, and/or connections between disability and these institutions. Work on 'wellbeing' identifies the…

The neoliberal rationale in English higher education promotes institutional and individual competition for economic success, often at the cost of equity and universalism. Within such context, there is a tendency to formalise student voice, for example, through professionalisation of students' unions. This paper argues that neoliberalism and its…

This research explores the experiences of Beth, a university student in the UK, as she comes to be labelled as 'dyslexic', and as she has her diagnosis taken away. Through use of Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) and discourse analysis, the research seeks to understand how Beth made sense of these experiences, and to explore the…

Within Australian universities, neoliberalism has transformed education into a marketplace and product, where academic employees are regulated and controlled through metrics, productivity, and pressure to maintain and increase 'value'. In this environment, disabled academics face increasing barriers to workplace participation and meaningful…

Ableism is the systematic oppression of and prejudice toward individuals with disabilities due to the idealization of nondisabled bodies and minds. Despite legislation aimed at broadening the rights of individuals with disabilities, ableism persists, including in classrooms of postsecondary institutions and within the field social work. However,…

Underestimating the important role that disability plays in our growing world, the environment, and our inter-dependent economies is no longer acceptable. Far from being placed in a subaltern position, disability plays a significant role in theory and research development in the most recent waves of initiatives addressing work, resources, and the…

Assessment accommodations are used globally in higher education systems to ensure that students with disabilities can participate fairly in assessment. Even though assessment accommodations are supposed to promote access, not success, they are commonly portrayed as potentially being "cheating" in that they provide certain students with…

The article discusses recent Higher Education (HE) initiatives to introduce the Sunflower Scheme, which enables students with hidden disabilities to 'discreetly' indicate the existence of a disability to access support. A significant problem related to persons with hidden disabilities lies in their frequent reluctance to disclose their…

Aspects of academic life and work that some may consider "normal," such as extensive meetings, brightly lit spaces, constant reading, and demands for continuous productivity, can be additionally debilitating for people with non-apparent disabilities like traumatic brain injury (TBI). These concerns affect the 28.3 percent of the academic…

Dramatic changes in education have occurred in the last twenty years due to technological developments, including social media, smartphones, increasing access to the internet, the move to learning management systems, the growth of online classes, and artificial intelligence, just to name a few. Most recently, a global pandemic caused higher…

Following the passage of the Higher Education Opportunity Act in 2008, inclusive post-secondary education (IPSE) opportunities for individuals with intellectual disabilities began to emerge on campuses. Since then, the number of programs has grown exponentially, but there is still much to learn about this new category. As these programs grew, a…

Despite the widespread promotion of inclusive environments within higher education, social barriers and a lack of understanding among university staff continue to hinder students with disabilities in their goals of graduating and finding employment. Using ableism as a theoretical framework, this study aimed to explore attitudes among higher…

This dissertation examines how disabled students and faculty access and navigate higher education through a rhetorical perspective. More specifically, this dissertation focuses on the tactics these disabled rhetors use to navigate encounters with academic ableism and what they can teach faculty about creating an accessible composition classroom. I…

It is well known that disabled students face a myriad of barriers to inclusion while navigating higher education. Institutional policies and practices serve as fundamental drivers to the operation of a university and, as such, play a significant role in the support, experiences, protections, and inclusion of disabled students. This study…

In scholarly research, disabilities are predominantly understood as something that obscures assessment rather than enriches it. In this study, I examine how research on assessment adjustments (e.g. extra time in tests and separate testing rooms) portrays disabled students. I discuss how this area of research plays a role in constructing an image…