You're not going to be alone, Oxford is such a supportive place. I think it's just over one in four students have a disability and that's not to mention all the staff here who have a disability or long term health condition or who are neurodivergent.

I have a disability myself. It's in mental health and I always felt at university, when I'm older I want to be able to help people with their careers but also advocate for those with disabilities, so please come feel at home and ask for the support. 

I'm autistic and I have two boys who are autistic and ADHD, so I've become really aware with them going through school and into university of the sorts of barriers in higher education for disabled students. The way that we try and support them above all is by setting up our teaching so that it's inclusive from the start. I do a lot of work with tutors in terms of what does inclusive teaching look like and how do you set up your teaching so that students get what they need.

For my whole career I've worked with children and adults with disabilities. I liaise with the Disability Advisory Service, just making sure that we can put in any changes we need to as quickly as we can to make sure that things are ready for students before they arrive.

Some of the societies are so wonderful. Sometimes like being around other people helps you get your work done. It's fun as well because there's other people and it's very supportive. But they also have like socials, which are usually non-drinking events. It's not as overwhelming, maybe, like particularly as an autistic person that you just have to go and talk to people, which can feel really, really difficult. But maybe you're like doing crafts together or you're listening to a talk together and then you can focus on something, but you can also chat alongside and it's really nice.

I work with the teams that help disabled students on the front line. For example, I've been working with the Disability Advisory Service and their staff members who help people with disabilities throughout their student life to understand what the journeys look like for different students at different colleges and different divisions, and try and make the experiences as good for students with disabilities as it is for those without. 

It's not that we're not intelligent or capable, it's just that we kind of approach things in different ways, which can be really useful, especially in thinking about doing a doctorate, like asking slightly different questions or approaching things in different ways that I think it's really valuable. Being a good teacher, being a good educator, it's important to slow down and cater to everyone's needs.

Support is about equitable empowerment and so it's about making sure that you are best set up to give of your best and really enjoy your studies and thrive as a student, academically and otherwise. 

If I know that I can help remove some of those barriers for students to make them feel more comfortable and be a small part of them being able to reach their full potential, I find that so rewarding. I want you to enjoy your time here and feel included and just be able to put your best foot forward. If you're ever unsure, please know that there are people here, myself included, who want to support you.