Experiences of emerging adults with cerebral palsy in tertiary education and employment : lessons from research and the field

![CDATA[Objective: Successful participation in tertiary education and employment is a key developmental task for young people, and people with cerebral palsy (CP) aspire to success in the same way as their peers without disability. Participation in tertiary education and employment correlates to positive outcomes in a range of areas, including quality of life, social inclusion, and financial status. Unfortunately emerging adults with CP and other disabilities continue to experience less success in these areas than their peers. This is despite over 20 years of legislation promoting equal rights and access to education and employment in Australia and despite a range of policies, supports and services being in place to promote and facilitate participation. This paper details enablers and challenges to participation of people with CP in tertiary education and employment, and makes recommendations for policy and service delivery. Design: A focused analysis of an existing qualitative data set, along with insights from 5 years experience delivering the National Disability Coordination Officer Program, an Australian Government Initiative working to improve linkages within the education, training and employment sectors and address systemic barriers to participation. Method: Perspectives and experiences of emerging adults with CP around tertiary education and employment were prominent within data collected for a large narrative inquiry into the stories of emerging adults with CP. Participants were 18 volunteers with cerebral palsy aged 18–25 years who lived in New South Wales (mean age 21yr; 11 male, 7 female; 11 metropolitan, 5 regional, 2 rural). Severity (GMFCS: I=2; II=5; III=7; IV=1; V=3) and type of CP varied. Multiple in-depth unstructured interviews were conducted with each person to explore their experience of emerging adulthood. During this focused analysis, open coding was used to identify key themes in the data relating to experiences in tertiary education and employment. Results: Emerging adults with CP report a range of environmental barriers to their effective participation in tertiary education and employment. These include challenges navigating systems, negative attitudes from educators and potential employers, and difficulties accessing reasonable adjustments, technology, education and employment settings. These issues are compounded by gaps in coordination within and between sectors, and by poor understanding of people with disability and stakeholders of both the right to access support and what support is available. Conclusion: More work is required to address systemic and environmental barriers to participation of people with disability in tertiary education and employment and foster improved outcomes.]]