Research Insights: How Did the COVID-19 Pandemic Affect the Transition to Post-Secondary Education for Students with Disabilities?

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Peer Reviewed icon Peer Reviewed
Date issued
Aug 2023
Subject
Person with Disability;
Pandemic;
Education;
Diversity and Inclusion;
Educational Institution;
Higher Education;
High School;
Coronavirus;
Disability Policy;
Children with Disabilities
JEL code
I21 - Analysis of Education;
I23 - Higher Education • Research Institutions;
I28 - Government Policy;
J14 - Economics of the Elderly • Economics of the Handicapped • Non-Labor Market Discrimination
Country
Chile
Category
Catalogs and Brochures
In Chile, students with disabilities experienced greater difficulties in accessing well-established post-secondary institutions during the pandemic than did their peers without disabilities. For students with disabilities, the pandemic disproportionally reduced the probability of taking the general admission test for tertiary education and the probability of enrolling in a high-quality institution. This increased inequality in tertiary education. These results are consistent with students with disabilities not receiving the support they needed in their last year of secondary school due to the pandemic. Difficulties might include limited availability of reasonable accommodations for taking the general admission test, or other related barriers.