Identifying Effects of COVID-19 Pandemic-Related Changes on Academic and Social Experiences of Autistic University Students [Funder: Carleton University COVID-19 Rapid Research Response Grants]

The COVID-19 pandemic-related isolation measures have caused rapid changes in academic instructional delivery and social interactions. Similar changes and measures are known to have a long-lasting impact on the general population, with autistic individuals experiencing even greater difficulties than their nonautistic peers. Autistic individuals are now facing an unprecedented change in their daily routines. Given a growing enrollment of autistic students in universities worldwide, there is a need to develop an understanding of the effects of COVID-19 related to: a) rapid changes in the mode of academic instruction delivery, and b) unexpected isolation measures on this student population. By drawing on interviews with and a survey of autistic university students in Canada and internationally, this study will have direct implications on the mitigation of the academic and social challenges that the autistic student population experiences and, ultimately, on the retention of autistic students under rapidly changing conditions.