COLUMBUS, Ohio — Recent studies show college dropout rates for students with autism are higher than their neurotypical peers, but one group is trying to change that.
What You Need To Know
- OSU’s Autistic Students Union was a club created by and for students with autism
- The club was designed to create a safe space and provide members educational equality
- Autistic Students Union started in January of 2022 at Ohio State and already has close to 200 members
Anirudh Subramaniam is head of Ohio State’s Autistic Students Union. It’s a club created by and for students with autism.
"People have done this before,” said Subramaniam. “People have done this at the University of Pittsburgh. And what I said to myself, 'Why can't I replicate that experiment over here?'"
He said the club offers a lot — from friendships to even employment opportunities.
"It's to form a community that we can all be friends, and we also have established partnerships with JPMorgan and Chase in order to help give our members of the club future employment and summer internships,” Subramaniam said.
The club, Subramaniam said, is also about educational equality.
"We get to sort of create social change by proving that we don't need to be silent,” he explained. “We can advocate for ourselves and ensure that we are able to attain the same level of tertiary education as other students."
According to a study by the National Autism Indicators Report, 34% of autistic college students complete their degrees within six years — compared to 60% of their neurotypical peers.
"The thing is that the needs of Neurodiverse students were not really being met,” Subramaniam explained, “and even though we have great disability clubs on campus, they only seem to cater toward more physical disabilities, ignoring the silent minority of Neurodivergent people."
That's especially personal to Subramaniam.
"As a neurodivergent student,” he said, “and the formation of this community sort of helps me and other students go through the college and get a degree for ourselves to help us move along in the world."
As long as Subramaniam's around, he wants to inspire change: I feel like if I can build this community and make it last, even after I graduated and move on, I feel like I would have accomplished something by ensuring that my fellow Neurodivergent people get a sustainable quality of life, by ensuring that there's a community for them that will always support them and welcome them with open arms whenever they need it."
The club at Ohio State started in January of 2022 and already has close to 200 members.