Effects of disability-related services, accommodations, and integration on academic success of students with disabilities in higher education. A scoping review

The scoping review provides insight into the empirical evidence on the effects of disability-related services, health promotion, testing accommodations, social and academic integration on academic success of students with disabilities in higher education. A systematic literature search was conducted in EBSCO, ERIC, PsycINFO, MEDLINE, Sociological Abstracts, Cochrane Library, and LIVIVO. Empirical studies published between 2008 and 2022, in English and German language, were included. In summary, 46 studies met the inclusion criteria. The results were categorised into four intervention groups and catalogued through a system of categories. The paper demonstrates contrasting effects of the interventions on academic success. The qualitative studies showed that students evaluated the interventions as important for adaption on campus and academic success. However, quantitative studies lacked from sufficient sample sizes and causal relationships of the variables could not be established. The interventions of disability-related services, and testing accommodations did rarely show statistically significant effects on academic success. Health promotion, and social and academic integration showed significant effects of the interventions on success outcomes. The findings of this study have practical implications for university's staff and disability services, helping to promote the academic success of students with disabilities.