King's College London

We want to ensure that everyone feels that they belong at King’s, including students with neurodiversity.

Our research aims to help us better understand the experiences of neurodivergent students and how we can build an inclusive environment that best supports them.

We know that the most common disabilities amongst King’s students fall under the umbrella of neurodiversity (e.g. autism, ADHD and dyslexia).

Research suggests that neurodiverse students are more likely to experience challenging emotions whilst at university than neurotypical students. This can include feelings of hopelessness, social difficulties, poor self-esteem, and loneliness and anxiety. We also know that students with one or more of the most common forms of neurodiversity experience greater drop-out rates.

However, it is not clear as to what factors contribute to a sense of belonging in neurodivergent students, and how we can best support these students to ensure they feel able to complete their university studies.

Project aims

The research has two main aims:

• To better understand the factors influencing belonging in neurodivergent students.
• To produce co-created recommendations for promoting belonging in neurodivergent students.

How will the research be conducted?

• The research team will work with a student advisory body comprised of neurodivergent students to conduct focus groups between October to December 2024.
• The focus groups will be led by two student researchers and conducted both in-person and online. Given that some students may feel less comfortable within focus groups, we will also offer one-to-one interviews (online or in-person) to ensure inclusivity.
• Data from the focus groups will be analysed using the qualitative method of thematic analysis to better understand factors influencing a sense of belonging in neurodivergent students.
• Drawing on those insights, a workshop will be held in March 2025 with the student advisory body, student researchers and staff to draft recommendations on how to support neurodivergent students.

What impact will this project have?

This project will help us understand why a feeling of belonging is often reduced in neurodivergent students. It will be used to co-create guidance about to how to improve these students’ sense of belonging.

We expect this guidance to have implications for university-wide activities, such as inductions and teaching and learning activities.

Other outcomes include:

• Training and development of student researchers.
• Inclusion of neurodivergent students in the research to raise the profile of student voice at King’s in a meaningful way.
• A case study publication in a peer-reviewed journal.
• Social media outputs documenting the process and findings of the work.

Find out more and get in touch

The Belonging in Neurodivergent Students project is led by Professor Ellie Dommett and Dr Rebecca Upsher.

Want to find out more about this initiative or find out how we can help you with your own? Get in touch with BE At King's at beatkings@kcl.ac.uk.