Helping universities and placement providers support their neurodivergent students
The experiences of neurodivergent students are complex, so our aim is to educate you to gain confidence, start discussions, and develop your day-to-day activities so that you can better support your neurodivergent students.
Interactive Workshops
We provide interactive workshops to help you better support the needs of your neurodivergent students. We help you to identify the common challenges that neurodivergent students may face; explore how these challenges may impact your student’s learning and experience; develop strategies that you can implement to help mitigate these challenges; and identify areas of your own day-to-day activities that could be adapted.
Common challenges neurodiverse students face
Neurodivergent students often face multiple challenges, including: sensory processing differences, executive functioning challenges, emotional regulation challenges, working memory challenge, inattention (easily distracted, forgetfulness, lack of attention to detail), social and communication challenges, masking, audio processing difficulties, reading and writing challenges, spatial awareness challenges, lack of confidence and self-esteem, imposter syndrome and rejection sensitivity.
Below are three common challenges faced by neurodivergent students: we help you to identify these challenges and develop strategies that you can implement to mitigate them for your neurodivergent students.
Sensory processing differences
Neurodivergent students often face challenges in how their brain’s process and respond to sensory information, which can affect various senses, including sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell.
These sensory processing differences can impact concentration, learning, and productivity, while also affecting communication skills and leading to greater emotional variability.
Executive functioning challenges
Many neurodivergent students face difficulties with cognitive processes that are essential for everyday success, such as planning, organising, problem-solving, goal-directed behaviour, cognitive flexibility, and impulse control.
These executive function challenges can make it harder to initiate and complete tasks, manage time effectively, make decisions, and maintain working memory—all of which are crucial skills for thriving in a university setting.
Emotional regulation challenges
Neurodivergent students may experience challenges with emotional regulation, which can make it difficult to manage and respond to emotional experiences.
Emotional regulation challenges can lead to emotional reactions that feel intense or seem disproportionate to the situation, with students finding it difficult to calm down afterward. Emotional lability, characterised by rapid and intense mood swings, can also be common.
Stimming
Stimming, or self-stimulatory actions, are natural behaviours often used by neurodivergent students, especially those with autism or ADHD, to manage emotions, regulate sensory input, and support executive function. These actions can range from subtle movements like leg bouncing or hair twirling to more noticeable actions like rocking or making sounds.
Catherine’s PhD Research highlights that stimming is not only a healthy and normal way to navigate daily life but also essential for concentration, problem-solving, and emotional well-being. However, many neurodivergent students feel pressured to suppress their stims, which can lead to decreased focus, emotional distress, and reduced overall well-being. It's crucial to create an environment that embraces and supports stimming.
Who we’ve worked with
What People Are Saying
We asked workshop atendees: What did you like most about the session, and why?
“Excellent insight into neurodivergence and being able to discuss openly with other colleagues about strategies to support learners in practice. A lot to think about and some key take away changes in practice that I am able to implement.”
“It was really relatable and made sense, it wasn’t some generic blurb”
“It was very useful in exploring neurodivergence related to autism and ADHD.”
“It was very informative and thought provoking.”
“The breadth of information and relevance and application to practice.”