Late-diagnosed ADHD in women increases demand for post-secondary accommodations

By ROSE LEUNG

Tanille Geib, a former Langara student who was diagnosed with ADHD at age 38, said accommodations are a tremendous help as she navigates the final years of her bachelor’s degree at the University of Victoria. 

“Being supported now with things that I struggle with is just so much more useful than when I went to Langara years ago,” Geib said. 

Geib is one of an increasing number of late-diagnosed women who are using post-secondary accommodations to help them through their demanding course loads. 

Accommodations can include special provisions like recorded lectures and extended time to complete exams, measures that Geib said have allowed her to meet her academic goals. 

“I got a two day extension [on my exam] and that was really really helpful for me,” Geib said. “So I’m just really grateful.”

An increase in diagnoses is driving demand

A 2023 study done by Epic Research, an American software company which collects and analyzes clinical health data, showed that the number of women between the ages of 23 and 49 diagnosed with ADHD nearly doubled between 2020 and 2022. A 2014 peer-reviewed study by researchers at the National Center for Girls and Women With ADHD helps explain the disparity, highlighting that women present more internalized symptoms compared with men, such as distraction or disorganization, which are often overlooked early in life.

Mairi Mallet, a registered nurse at Langara College’s Health Services, said she attributes the rise in diagnoses to increasing knowledge of mental health and ADHD. “There’s been more discussion around that in the media and online,” she said, adding that this results in students noticing symptoms earlier.

Accessibility services are playing catch-up

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, former UBC student Ghaz Akbari said that finding support for her ADHD was difficult. “Back in my day nobody really told me about it,” Akbari said. “Systemically, the support didn’t exist.”

UBC student Miriam Fenniri said she was introduced to accessibility services soon after receiving her diagnosis at 19. However, the process of obtaining accommodations can still be challenging, she said, especially for students with ADHD that struggle with procrastination.

“I feel like the biggest actual barrier is just doing it. A lot of students know that it’s there but there’s a struggle in going to the counsellor and actually taking that lead,” Fenniri said.

Lynda Beveridge, director of accessibility at Kwantlen Polytechnic University, said the university is working on more innovative ways to respond to the increased demand. 

In an emailed statement, Beveridge said, “new artificial intelligence-driven tools – when used within university policies and instructors’ guidelines – can assist with tasks students with ADHD may find challenging.” 

Breaking down barriers

Kwantlen has seen a two per cent increase in students seeking accommodations for ADHD between 2020 and 2024. 

BCIT Student Success senior director Laura Vail has been supporting students with disabilities for over eight years. She said the university may make overarching changes to how they approach accommodations. 

“Instead of addressing the needs of an individual, you’re coming at it from a systemic approach of how do we make education just more accessible to everybody regardless of their culture or language spoken or disability or neurodiversity,” Vail said. 

She hopes this will reduce barriers to access and allow students to focus on learning. 

This story was originally published on Feb. 12, 2025. It was updated with additional information on Feb. 26, 2025.