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?

I have 3 ND children. The oldest was diagnosed with dyslexia, but had to do additional tests to get extra time. He had 25% extra at school, as an adult trying to get his English he got 50%.
The next one didnt have a diagnosis but got 25% extra time due to the same tests, as an adult has a diagnosis if ADHD and ASD. The youngest was diagnosed as ASD at 9 but didn’t need or get extra time.

When I was at Oxford, looking back an awful lot of people there would now get a diagnosis of some kind of ND.

I'm like that too. Not with eating, but everything else. All or nothing?! (I also have anorexia so maybe It is with food too?)
It is quite weird and I'm sure I've got ADHD but it was never even thought of for kids who were quite academically ok and female back in my day. It was all about 'naughty little boys'. Even that didn't really start till I was a late teen.

The DM jumping on the bandwagon of course re ADHD as part the current narrative about over diagnosis of conditions that are not immediately visible, be that physical or neurological. I can't comment on Oxford's internal processes for assessment of ADHD but it is interesting that overall they seem to have a significantly higher intake of people declaring disabilities (19%) vs Cambridge (13%). In terms of offers at Cambridge though, I would say that people applying with autism and SpLD eg adhd & dyslexia make up a below average % - 1.6% of offer holders declare autism and 2.3% a SpLD.

It is however quite possible that a significant number of students arrive at Oxford and Cambridge (and other top unis) with undiagnosed neurodiversity incl ADHD, particularly academically able girls who have quietly struggled with focus and taken forever to get their work done but somehow always deliver, with resulting impact on mental health. I have a DD at Oxbridge who was diagnosed with severe ADHD in her teens (on meds and 25% extra time) but who could so very easily have slipped through the net because she was still achieving at school and was seen to be a model pupil. Undiagnosed, these students are likely to fall apart at university once they no longer have structure and parental oversight. It's possible that many of these students may be being picked up at Oxbridge where it is harder to hide and where difficulties may be picked up earlier because of the tutorial system?

I would second @StrawberrySwitchcake 's point that it is pretty hard to survive at Oxbridge with ADHD unless really motivated, but also that as @MrsBennetsPoorNerves says, the weekly deadlines and tutorials provide a structure and pressure that is needed. The first 2 terms have been pretty stressful and exhausting for my DD but she is still happy she's there. Long deadlines with everything due at once / end of the term would be impossible for her to manage as she just wouldn't be able to finish anything until the last minute. Managing basic 'adulting' like buying food, hobbies/societies and dealing with emails etc, on top of studying, is another layer of 'stuff' that can cause neurodiversity to become more overwhelming at uni.

Do you think the collegiate system may make Oxford, Cambridge and a couple of others more appealing to some of those with ‘adulting’ issues, @Halloumilover67?

I think certain subjects lend themselves to ND people.
DD is doing Zoology and the Herpatologists tend to be more ND than the people interested in insects or fluffy things.
When I was at Uni the Computer Scientists were a bit "interesting" but ND wasn't really a well known thing back then. The Humanities students were probably a bit more NT I suppose

Having worked among scientists/comp sci/mathsy people for decades, I think it’s not that being ND is an advantage as that it’s less likely to be a disadvantage than in some other fields.

Can I challenge this please?

A diagnosis of ADHD does NOT automatically grant extra time of 25%. If you are doing this, then you are doing it wrong. The student must have been assessed as needing this extra time (or whatever additional access arrangements) and it must be their normal way of working. The school has to be able to justify this to JCQ.

A student can get extra time WITHOUT a medical diagnosis, if the school deems it appropriate and has evidence that it is necessary. It is not at all dependent on parents “buying” a diagnosis as you are implying.

I know some people can’t wait to bash private schools or middle class parents supposedly “buying” advantage for their children. But this is not how exam access arrangements work. If you work in a school and are responsible for access arrangements you should know this and shouldn’t be spreading misinformation online.

The rules for access arrangements are publicly available here.
https://www.jcq.org.uk/exams-office/access-arrangements-and-special-consideration/

Thank you for this - I have the CP3TA and did exams access arrangements from 2003 to 2021. I attended the JCQ courses every year and had several successful JCQ inspections. Everything you have said is absolutely correct, with the exception that more affluent parents are more likely to be able to afford a private diagnosis.

This is exactly what happens in my kids' (private) school where one has not insignificant physical disabilities and also documented proof of long-term involvement from OT with writing issues throughout his primary school years and he still had to prove he needed the extra time.

Another of my DC has dyslexia and again, had to prove extra time was needed, and doesn't have extra time for some exams.

They are quite rigorous! Of course not every school may be like this.

DD was hoping for some adjustments at Uni, not academic but with regards to her accommodation.
As our GP and CAHMS had been useless we had paid privately for her assessments and the Uni refused to take any of the reports into account. Her GP said that as they had only been involved in initially referring to CAHMS they were unable to provide any info either.
Fortunately we could pay for the only accommodation that suited her needs

That's terrible, @Hoppinggreen . Do you mind sharing or pm-ing the uni? I hope your DD is thriving at uni.

She is doing brilliantly.
To be fair to The Uni without any concrete medical evidence from her GP I suppose they were being fair as I suppose we could well have been taking the piss and getting "pet" Counsellors to write a letter.

This has been my experience as a parent at a private school. ADHD is not equal to automatic extra time.

DD routinely had to submit 2-3 essays each week, switching between different modules for each, then have them pulled apart in the tutorials. Her degree was assessed based on 8 exams spread across 15 days, with her final 3 papers sat across a Tuesday afternoon, Wednesday morning, then Wednesday afternoon with each exam being over 4 hours long. The exams covered everything she had studied in her 2nd & 3rd year. It nearly broke her as she finds it incredibly difficult to switch from subject to subject.

The short terms & intensive studying sound great, but they have mocks as soon as they go back for the next term, so there is little down time on the holidays. She was constantly playing catch up.

DD thrived on the rapid turnaround of tutorial essays and the marathon exam period. Alternating bursts of focus with her sport suited her well and she always preferred having exams as the end goal over other forms of assessment.

Neirodivergence runs in my family. The younger generations have diagnoses. The older ones were seen as eccentric, absent-minded professor types who were brilliant at whatever their particular area of expertise was, but were pretty abysmal at basic life skills and needed to be looked after by a sister/wife/housekeeper/college staff etc.

I have two neurodiverse kids one has extra time she has a slow processing speed her twin brother does not have extra time as he does not have a slow processing speed.

Neurodivergence itself does not equal extra time - there has to be another reason. For lots of kids with dyslexia they have a slower processing time.

I think also a lot of kids with SEN needs have been put into private schools so they can get extra support - so its not a huge surprise private schools have a higher number of SEN kids.

The children are supposed to score below certain thresholds in a battery of tests covering processing speed, working memory etc to qualify for extra time. .Diagnosis of a condition doesn’t, on its own, qualify a pupil for extra time.

I agree with this, but I don’t see a correlation between neurodivergence and scientific talent or accomplishment (nor an anti-correlation).

My understanding is that only some studies claim a correlation between ND and intelligence; most do not. I don’t think we know what is causing the rise in diagnoses if neurodivergent conditions and whether this reflects a true increase in the incidence if these conditions.

I am all for proper diagnosis and mitigation and forever urging such, including on this Board. But yes, some game the system and the numbers of UG students requiring mitigation are growing so rapidly (though nothing like in America) that sometimes it is difficult not to be cynical.

I work in a comprehensive and there are plenty of kids there with ADHD or autism diagnoses who are reading years below their age. I think.its very variable.

Previously, those who struggled to focus didn't get to go to (top) universities because they couldn't effectively study, revise or sit exams. Now that neurodiversity has become destigmatised, many more people are being diagnosed and, if ADHD, are medicated and therefore be able to study, revise and sit exams. My DD, who was diagnosed age 12, had a secondary Progress 8 score that was through the roof.

Those with ADHD often hyper fixate on subjects of interest to them.

Getting diagnosed with ADHD can take years and then medication is the same. Not everyone who is diagnosed is medicated and if it’s private, then those prescriptions also need to be funded privately. Arranging an extra time or support for exams is needs based and offered to all who have a need for it.

ADHD often tends to be alongside other conditions.

I'm an academic and I'd say most if not all of my colleagues are ND. We definitely are not more intelligent than the general population, you just need to see a professor trying to set up a powerpoint to demonstrate that. But we are quite suited to academic work. A lot of it is independent, so the pace, timing and content is all up to us. It's a quiet environment so the sensory load isn't too high. We get to show off about our specialist subjects etc.

Agree with that from my time working in a science environment.

ND wasn't talked about much back then but it was pretty obvious that a fair few were . Most ppl accepted the different approach that some had.

I miss the straightforwardness tbh.