Exams at the University of Oxford are tough, but there is one test that students nearly always pass with flying colours: 98 per cent of those who took part in an in-house university-funded assessment centre to screen for learning difficulties, including ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder), were told they may have a condition. The screening process involved answering questions like: ‘Would you describe yourself as a well-organised person?’ and ‘Do you tend to be on time to appointments?’. Students who met the criteria were then granted up to 25 per cent extra time in exams.
If I’d gone through the screening for ADHD, that extra time in exams would have been helpful
That so many Oxford students make the cut doesn’t surprise me. When I was a student at Oxford in 2021, I was told by a friend I might have ADHD. It wasn’t the first time I’d wondered if I might have that condition. Before I went to university, I remember coming across a post on Snapchat about the disorder, asking questions like ‘Are you often late?’ and ‘Do you overthink things?’. ‘Wow, they’ve got me spot on,’ I thought.
At Oxford, I struggled getting my thoughts on to paper and communicating them verbally. I also struggled with the reading. I thought it was because I had a short attention span. I’m sure that if I had undergone Oxford’s screening programme, my fears would have been confirmed. But, looking back, I realise it probably wasn’t anything to do with me. The real reason I couldn’t concentrate was because most of the books I read were boring.
The reality is that a lot of teenage girls ‘overthink’. A large number of people in general are late. This doesn’t mean they necessarily have ADHD.
In the end, I decided not to go through with the assessment. But doing so came at a price: it meant waving goodbye to extra time in tests.
That was a hard decision. At Oxford, I’d spend nights awake, and days sat on the floor, with sheets of paper strewn around me. Studying for History was difficult. If I’d gone through the screening for ADHD, that extra time in exams would have been helpful.
Many students have gone through this process and now benefit from having longer to answer questions than their peers. Of course, some of them do have conditions that the university should make allowances for. Yet it’s hard not to think that a screening process, such as that used by Oxford, might get gamed by students who, either convince themselves wrongly that they have ADHD, or simply want extra time in tests. After all, who wouldn’t?
I’m not sure what Oxford was like 20 or even 30 years ago. Now, it’s just full of people who complain and say they are depressed. Not all of that moaning is unwarranted, given the shallow culture faced by many students at universities today. But it is an insight into the gloomy atmosphere at Oxford these days.
The university’s most recent disability report from 2022/2023 suggests that around 28 per cent of students were recorded as having a disability. This compared to 17 per cent across the higher education sector as a whole.
Oxford says that it strives to be a welcoming place for disabled students. A spokesman said: ‘Oxford is committed to ensuring that all of our students have access to an outstanding educational experience at Oxford and that we fulfil our legal obligations by providing reasonable individual adjustments and study support for disabled students.’
That’s a noble objective – and it’s right, of course, that disabled students are made to feel welcome. But I can’t help wonder if the criteria for being recorded as having a disability at Oxford might be too low when it takes in so many students.
I don’t want to completely slate the university; I, and many people I know, generally had a very enjoyable time there. Oxford is certainly a beautiful city. But it seems unfair, to say the least, that some students are getting additional support when perhaps they shouldn’t.
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