Uncovering employment outcomes for autistic university graduates in the UK:an analysis of population data

Vincent, Jonathan and Ralston, Kevin (2023) Uncovering employment outcomes for autistic university graduates in the UK:an analysis of population data. Autism. ISSN 1362-3613 (In Press)

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Abstract

International research suggests that increasing numbers of autistic people are entering higher education. Currently, very little is known about this population. For example, the rates of autistic people enrolling at UK-based higher education institutions, the demographics of this population, the subjects they study, and particularly their graduate outcomes are unknown. This present study is an exploratory analysis of autistic graduate outcomes. We compare outcomes between autistic students, other disabled students, and non-disabled students, by sex. The article draws upon population data collected by the Higher Education Statistical Agency in the United Kingdom (N=1,326,416) across the years 2012-2018. Our findings indicate that the academic programmes studied at university by autistic students are more diverse than typically assumed. We also found that graduates make the transition into a range of employment sectors following graduation but experience persistent and gendered disparities in economic activity and income. We argue that higher education institutions must focus greater attention on developing more robust and effective employment transition support for autistic students and graduates.