Ready or Not: How to Prepare Autistic Students for College

Getting into college is not the same as being ready for it, and for autistic students, that gap can lead to a painful call home. Dr. Marci Schwartz, founder of Thrive College Counseling, joins Julianna and Kelley to unpack what real college readiness looks like: executive functioning, independent living, advocacy, and social connection, all built on a foundation of self-awareness. They talk through how parents can tell if a student is truly ready versus just capable, how to talk about fit instead of prestige, and what to do when a student needs to come home and start again.

Key Takeaways:

• College acceptance does not equal college readiness, self-awareness is the real foundation
• Four core skills to build before college: executive functioning, independent living, advocacy, and social connection
• Asking for help in a timely way is itself a college readiness skill, not just a social nicety
• Nearly 1 in 4 autistic college students drop out, prestige is not protection against that
• Fit matters more than rank: small classes and known professors can outweigh brand-name schools
• Students should demonstrate independence in high school, not just promise they'll do it later
• IEPs and 504s don't carry over to college, the student must self-identify and request accommodations
• Comprehensive support programs, executive functioning coaches, and gap-year skill building are real options when a student isn't ready
• Mental health self-identification is its own readiness skill, and often the hardest one to build
• Neurodiversity-informed career services matter as much as academic accommodations, because the real goal is career, not just college

Resources Mentioned in This Episode

• Thrive College Counseling — College counseling service specializing in neurodivergent teens, founded by episode guest Dr. Marci Schwartz https://www.thrivecollegecounseling.com

🔗 Learn More:
Website: refrigeratormoms.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/refrigeratormoms/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/refrigeratormoms
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/refrigeratormoms/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@RefrigeratorMoms

Refrigerator Moms is sponsored by Brain Performance Technologies, a specialty mental health clinic that offers neuromodulation treatments for mental health conditions including depression, PTSD, OCD, anxiety, ADHD and autism. Our treatments utilize TMS (transcranial magnetic stimulation) protocols including rTMS, aTMS, and MeRT. All of our treatments are drug-free and noninvasive. Call for insurance options or learn more at https://brainperformancetechnologies.com

00:00 A student's crisis call home from college
00:24 Welcome to Refrigerator Moms
01:04 Why college readiness starts in 9th grade
01:04 Meet Dr. Marci Schwartz
01:57 From therapist to college counselor
02:55 The biggest gap in family understanding
03:50 College capable versus college ready
04:06 The four core readiness skills
04:31 Self-awareness as the foundation
05:08 Building self-awareness through mistakes
06:09 Asking for help is a social skill
06:29 Redefining what social support means
08:23 Sponsor: Brain Performance Technologies
09:31 Scaffolding versus true independence
10:32 The show me standard for readiness
11:03 What demonstrating responsibility looks like
13:17 Executive functioning and independent living
13:31 Advocacy and IEP meeting involvement
14:15 Social skills and roommate life
14:33 What realistic prep looks like in high school
16:40 When to start these conversations
17:26 Talking to parents fixed on prestige
19:05 The one in four dropout statistic
19:40 How Dr. Schwartz evaluates college fit
21:15 Helping students recognize their own fit
21:47 Advice for students who come home
23:34 Mental health signs students must self-identify
24:53 Deferring enrollment versus community college
26:35 Sponsor: Brain Performance Technologies
27:24 What accommodations carry over to college
28:48 Comprehensive support programs explained
29:22 The hardest part to set up: mental health
30:31 Neurodiversity-informed career services
31:41 Closing advice for families
32:45 Where to find the Refrigerator Moms paper