Supporting Doctoral Candidates with Dyslexia

Dyslexia is a misunderstood condition that has a significant effect on peoples’ educational outcomes at all levels. There is a gap in the literature on supporting doctoral candidates with dyslexia.

This small-scale qualitative study focuses on reflective accounts during a doctoral study in social work. Using critical autoethnography, reflective accounts of barriers and enablers were examined.

Through thematic analysis of the harvested data raised five main themes: complexity of everyday processes; the written thesis challenge; translating into neurodiversity; affective and emotional processing; punctuation, grammar and spelling; technological developments and support.

Contribution to supporting doctoral candidates with additional needs, the literature and experience of using autoethnography, developments in the critical aspects of autoethnography and ‘new ways of seeing’.