Fast Facts: Students with disabilities (60)

Students with disabilities

Question:
How many students in postsecondary education have a disability?

Response:

Nineteen percent of undergraduates in 2015–16 reported having a disability. In 2015–16, the percentage of undergraduates who reported having a disability was 19 percent for male students and 20 percent for female students. There were some differences in the percentages of undergraduates with disabilities by characteristics such as veteran status, age, dependency status, and race/ethnicity. For example, 26 percent of undergraduates who were veterans reported having a disability, compared with 19 percent of undergraduates who were not veterans. The percentage of undergraduates having a disability was higher among those age 30 and over (23 percent) than among 15- to 23-year-olds (18 percent). Among dependent undergraduates, 17 percent reported having a disability, which was lower than the percentages for independent undergraduates who were married (21 percent) or unmarried (24 percent). A lower percentage of Asian undergraduates (15 percent) had a disability than White, Hispanic, and Black undergraduates (21, 18, and 17 percent, respectively). The percentage of postbaccalaureate students who reported having a disability (12 percent) was lower than the percentage for undergraduates (19 percent).

Percentage distribution of students enrolled in postsecondary institutions, by level, disability status, and selected student characteristics: 2015–16
Selected student characteristic	Undergraduate		Postbaccalaureate
Selected student characteristic	Students with disabilities¹	Students without disabilities	Students with disabilities¹	Students without disabilities
Total	19.4	80.6	11.9	88.1
Sex
Male	19.2	80.8	9.9	90.1
Female	19.6	80.4	13.3	86.7
Race/ethnicity
White	20.8	79.2	13.0	87.0
Black	17.2	82.8	10.3	89.7
Hispanic	18.3	81.7	14.3	85.7
Asian	15.2	84.8	6.2	93.8
Pacific Islander	23.6	76.4	14.9!	85.1
American Indian/Alaska Native	27.8	72.2	11.8!	88.2
Two or more races	22.1	77.9	19.7	80.3
Age
15 to 23	17.6	82.4	8.1	91.9
24 to 29	21.6	78.4	11.3	88.7
30 or older	22.6	77.4	13.5	86.5
Dependency status
Dependent	17.2	82.8	—	—
Independent, unmarried	23.9	76.1	11.5	88.5
Independent, married	20.5	79.5	10.3	89.7
Independent with dependents	20.3	79.7	13.4	86.6
Veteran status
Veteran	25.8	74.2	17.1	82.9
Not veteran	19.1	80.9	11.6	88.4

— Not available.
! Interpret data with caution. The coefficient of variation (CV) for this estimate is between 30 and 50 percent.
¹ Students with disabilities are those who reported that they had one or more of the following conditions: blindness or visual impairment that cannot be corrected by wearing glasses; hearing impairment (e.g., deaf or hard of hearing); orthopedic or mobility impairment; speech or language impairment; learning, mental, emotional, or psychiatric condition (e.g., serious learning disability, depression, ADD, or ADHD); or other health impairment or problem.
NOTE: Data are based on a sample survey of students who enrolled at any time during the school year. Data exclude students attending institutions in Puerto Rico. Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding. Race categories exclude persons of Hispanic ethnicity.
SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics. (2018, May). Table 311.10. Number and percentage distribution of students enrolled in postsecondary institutions, by level, disability status, and selected student characteristics: 2015–16 [Data table]. In Digest of education statistics. U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences. Retrieved January 25, 2022, from https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d20/tables/dt20_311.10.asp.

Related Tables and Figures: (Listed by Release Date)

2017, The Condition of Education 2017: Disability Rates and Employment Status by Educational Attainment

Other Resources: (Listed by Release Date)