When students get neurodiversity, they’ll take it to work (podcast)
Published on 9 September 2025 • Written by Dr Lisa Colledge
Download the podcast transcript.
When students build awareness of neurodiversity, they don’t leave it behind at university - they carry it into the workplace.
That’s the underlying message I shared in my recent conversation on University of Leiden’s Access and Support Platform podcast with Ana Zlatevski.
We talked about why awareness of autism, ADHD, and dyslexia matters so much when studying at university, and how the lessons students learn about neuro-inclusion today will shape our workplaces of tomorrow.
Here are three practical shifts I highlighted:
Be clear and literal. Ambiguity creates unnecessary barriers. Clear communication supports autistic students, international peers, and neurotypical colleagues alike.
Add visual support. A diagram, list, or flow chart alongside oral and written information helps neurodivergent learners, and improves understanding and retention for everyone.
Assume positive intent. What looks like disengagement to you may really be stress or a different information processing style, and the best that someone can offer on a given day.
Students who get neurodiversity bring their learning and expectations into the world of work. Leaders who prepare to meet that expectation now will be more attractive to emerging talent, as well as building happier, better performing.
For research-intensive institutions, this shift doesn’t just affect wellbeing or attraction — it changes what effective collaboration looks like in practice.
As research becomes more cross-disciplinary, mission-driven, and partnership-heavy, the ability to enable different thinking styles to work together becomes an operational concern, not just a cultural one.
My conversation with Ana focused on awareness and early habits.
If you’re working in a research office and noticing that rising expectations for collaboration, clarity, and inclusion are colliding with systems designed for a different research era, I’ve written a short reflection to help you assess whether this pattern matches your reality.
➡️ Test whether you recognise the signals: When research ambition outruns the system.
Originally published by University of Leiden’s Access and Support Platform podcast here.
