Neurodivergence at top universities -are we seeing the stereotypical character features associated with intelligence?

[mids2019]

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14506757/oxford-students-diagnosed-adhd-extra-time-exams.html

It looks like conditions such as ADHD are now quite prevalent at universities and I was surprised at some of the figures.

Is the rise of ADHD something general in society or could some of the characteristics of conditions such as this always have been with us in terms of being a product of being clever?

In US, ADHD get medication which helps focus on studies and give extra exam time. Would this be a trend over here?

Yes that is the case here also. So kids that previously could not concentrate on an exam so got a poor mark even though they may be highly intelligent. The most intelligent kids I know are all ND whether that is diagnosed or undiagnosed but just very obviously ND.

The first psychological studies in ADHD were conducted on young boys, and it was widely considered something they would grow out of. It’s now known to be lifelong and that females can also have ADHD.

Years ago it we mainly just the hyperactive side that was recognised so unless you had a hyperactive child they wouldn’t have been diagnosed. Now the inattentive type of ADHD is much more recognised whereas years ago these people would have just gone under the radar been thought of as a bit disorganised or a day dreamer

My son was the only person in his Uni year group (Stem at a good Uni) that did not go to private school.
He said many of the private school kids said that they were 'pushed' - i.e. encouraged to do the neorodiversity tests because it gives you an hour extra in the exams.
There is a perverse incentive to be neovodiverse.

That’s right - people are still confused about the diagnostic criteria. I don’t think it’s overdiagnosed now. It was underdiagnosed before.

Disclaimer - I have no direct experience of either Oxbridge or diagnosed ADHD but from what I read on here and tiktok it seems the short terms and frequent assignments / exam based assessment would suit a clever person with ADHD well?

My son is autistic and he can’t even sit through the normal exam time never mind being given an extra hour!! I have heard previously though that there is more prevalence in private schools of special measures being given in exams than in state schools which I don’t think is wholly down to their being more sen kids in private

Medication seems quite hard to get I the uk. Analysis of prescriptions seem to suggest only 11ish percent of people with a diagnosis get medicine.

Maybe they are all uni though!

I managed exams access arrangements for many years. A diagnosis of autism or ADHD gives 25% extra time, so half an hour for a 2-hour exam. A private diagnosis of autism costs about £3000. I can well believe that private school students have more access to diagnosis.

Currently there’s around an 8-month waiting list to begin titration. Not everyone with ADHD wants to be medicated, though.

This isn't about people with ADHD being more intelligent, (a quick google suggests there is no correlation between having ADHD and IQ or that ADHD can lead to a slightly lower IQ in children) they're suggesting that some Oxford students are playing the system - knowing they just have to answer a few questions 'correctly', not actually see a doctor at all, and they can get themselves 25% extra time in their exams.

The problem is that it can take years to get a diagnosis, so those who need one may not get one in time to get the adjustments they deserve/need without this system.

JCQ strongly recommend rest breaks rather than extra time. It’s possible to have both. It would need to be a 4-hour exam for anyone to get an hour’s extra time.

I have direct experience of both and I think the very frequent assignments would be a struggle for all but the most motivated students with ADHD.

I used to always be the first to finish the exam. I had a very black and white way of looking at it, either I knew the answer or not and if not make something up. I'd rush through it really fast and never go back to check my answers. It was like I enjoyed rushing? I wasn't very good though as I was useless at retaining information that didn't interest me. I'm thinking I have ADHD. I was awful at school but the exams gave me a 'buzz'.
So more time wouldn't have helped me at all.

Me too. I'm diagnosed autistic though. I also speak fast, eat fast, complete tasks fast....I have two speeds - fast and stop 😆

I also have experience of both, though I wasn't diagnosed with adhd until after leaving university.

The frequent assignments were absolutely a struggle, but on the other hand, the frequent deadlines and scrutiny of 1:1 supervision forced me to work in a way that I'd have struggled to work if it had been left up to me to manage my time over a longer period. The intensity of the Cambridge system was utterly exhausting, but it also helped to get the best out of me.

I also agree that I wouldn't have necessarily wanted more time. I was always rushed in exams, but the time pressure allowed me to hyperfocus.

A larger proportion of autistic people have a high IQ compared to the general population. I don’t know about ADHD but it wouldn’t totally surprise me.

My personal opinion is that the social areas of the brain function in a less typical way when the intelligence/logic side is functioning higher. Then it's sometimes missed because the lack of social skills can inhibit learning and make it harder for others to tell.
Obviously it can be combined with learning difficulties, but when there's not another condition it does seem to correlate with high intelligence and logic.

That’s a good point - the “8 assignments due in March” model in some universities isn’t helpful for time management.

I think in certain areas ADHD correlates with higher intelligence. Not necessarily innately in the way autism seems to, but the hyperfixations on interests can lead to excessive intelligence and achievement in their areas of interest compared to someone without ADHD.

Is there any evidence of this being done other than specifically at Oxford? I generally find it a bit unhelpful when people read Oxford, cite the nonexistent institution ‘Oxbridge’ and then extend to ‘top universities’ in general. Not saying it doesn’t happen elsewhere of course. And not necessarily confined to ADHD. My DD was rather pissed off after her school did a dyslexia assessment for all pupils before GCSEs, which resulted in some getting extra time. She was pretty certain some had gamed it.

I didn’t know about the screening, testing etc, but for various reasons I know many physicists, Astro physicists and mathematicians at and from Imperial and Oxford and I would say they demonstrate stereotypical traits*. Though not what I would inexpertly assume to be ADHD.

(Disclaimer: *which do not present as negative)

It’s usual to test some students for exam access arrangements at the end of Y9/start of Y10. It’s not a diagnostic dyslexia assessment.