opening page ornament

Welcome to the Australian Centre for Student Equity and Success

The Australian Centre for Student Equity and Success acknowledges Indigenous peoples across Australia as the Traditional Owners of the lands on which the nation’s campuses are situated. With a history spanning more than 60,000 years as the original educators, Indigenous peoples hold a unique place in our nation. We recognise the importance of their knowledge and culture, and reflect the principles of participation, equity, and cultural respect in our work. We pay our respects to Elders past, present, and future, and consider it an honour to learn from our Indigenous colleagues, partners, and friends.

Enter website
Back to Publications
You are reading: Non-disclosing students with disabilities or learning challenges: characteristics and size of a hidden population

Susan Grimes, Jill Scevak, Erica Southgate, and Rachel Buchanan

Published in The Australian Educational Researcher, the Australian Association for Research in Education.
August 2017

Abstract

Internationally, university students with disabilities (SWD) are recognised as being under-represented in higher education. They face significant problems accessing appropriate accommodations for their disability. Academic outcomes for this group are lower in terms of achievement and graduation rates. The true size of the SWD group at university is suggested to be different to that reported due to students not disclosing their disability for a variety of reasons including stigma, fear of discrimination, past negative experiences, and gaps in knowledge about available institutional support and accommodations. Research suggests that students do not consider their issues to fall under the term disability, resulting in a hidden population of students who could be better supported by their university. Using an Australian regional university as a case study, this paper examines the SWD population by identifying both disclosed and non-disclosed SWD populations within the domestic undergraduate population as well as information on the nature of students’ diagnoses or assessment, not previously captured. Using an anonymous online survey which reframed disability using the non-deficit language of learning challenge, the population of those dealing with learning challenges, disclosed and non-disclosed, was identified and a population estimate calculated. Student characteristics that predicted non-disclosure and specific information on the nature of students’ diagnoses were made and have the potential to develop targeted institutional support for a population that is currently difficult to access.

Grimes, Susan, Jill Scevak, Erica Southgate, and Rachel Buchanan. 2017. “Non-disclosing students with disabilities or learning challenges: characteristics and size of a hidden population.” The Australian Educational Researcher. 1-17. doi. 10.1007/s13384-017-0242-y

Download the full report:
ACSES Quote icon
Non-disclosing-students-with-disabilities-or-learning-challenges-characteristics-and-size-of-a-hidden-population.pdf
416 KB
Disability Journal articles
Download the full report
Non-disclosing students with disabilities or learning challenges: characteristics and size of a hidden population
S Grimes, J Scevak, E Southgate, R Buchanan, 2017
Featured publications
“We want to build a culture of learning in our community”: The widening participation functions of the Regional University Study Hubs Program
D Keenan​ , 2025
An ACSES Equity Fellowship final report. Using a mixed methods approach, this study offers new insights, including a typology of Regional University Study Hub models and key recommendations to strengthen the program’s impact on student success.
Regional, rural and remote
Regional and remote
Increasing the number of Aboriginal teachers in the Northern Territory: Planning for the future
T Woodroffe​ , 2025
An ACSES First Nations Fellowship final report. This project explored how teaching is perceived as a career by Aboriginal senior secondary students and current Aboriginal teachers, and examined strategies to promote teaching as a viable and appealing profession.
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
Indigenous
Investigating the relationships between First-in-Family status, equity groups, and university access
T Zając, G Stahl, W Tomaszewski, and N Xiang ​ , 2025
A Small Grants Research Program final report. The study compared the university enrolment patterns of First-in-Family (FiF) students, defined as students without university-educated parents, with that of non-FiF students.
First in Family
Research Reports
Understanding school students’ aspirations in uncertain times
L Fray, S Patfield, K Sincock, J Gore, and C Rubie​ , 2026
A Small Grants Research Program final report. The study returned to a diverse cross-section of schools in the Aspirations Longitudinal Study (2012-2015) to understand how students’ views about their futures had changed over the past decade.
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
Indigenous
More publications
“We want to build a culture of learning in our community”: The widening participation functions of the Regional University Study Hubs Program
D Keenan​ , 2025
An ACSES Equity Fellowship final report. Using a mixed methods approach, this study offers new insights, including a typology of Regional University Study Hub models and key recommendations to strengthen the program’s impact on student success.
Regional, rural and remote
Regional and remote
Research report
Publications
Fellowship Reports
Increasing the number of Aboriginal teachers in the Northern Territory: Planning for the future
T Woodroffe​ , 2025
An ACSES First Nations Fellowship final report. This project explored how teaching is perceived as a career by Aboriginal senior secondary students and current Aboriginal teachers, and examined strategies to promote teaching as a viable and appealing profession.
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
Indigenous
Research report
Publications
Fellowship Reports
Investigating the relationships between First-in-Family status, equity groups, and university access
T Zając, G Stahl, W Tomaszewski, and N Xiang ​ , 2025
A Small Grants Research Program final report. The study compared the university enrolment patterns of First-in-Family (FiF) students, defined as students without university-educated parents, with that of non-FiF students.
First in Family
Research Reports
Understanding school students’ aspirations in uncertain times
L Fray, S Patfield, K Sincock, J Gore, and C Rubie​ , 2026
A Small Grants Research Program final report. The study returned to a diverse cross-section of schools in the Aspirations Longitudinal Study (2012-2015) to understand how students’ views about their futures had changed over the past decade.
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
Indigenous
Low SES
Low socioeconomic status
Regional, rural and remote
Regional and remote
Research Reports