3 tips from Middle Tennessee State University for how to hire mentally or physically disabled students and recent grads

College Recruiter recently asked career experts for their top three tips for employers who want to improve their diversity, equity, and inclusion by recruiting more college students and recent graduates who are mentally or physically disabled. Below are tips from Lance Alexis of Middle Tennessee State University:

1. Understand why people with disabilities may not apply.  It is not necessarily a lack of qualification or interest, but an earned assumption that organizations do not understand the needs of the disability community.  This is often caused by a consistent lack of access and knowledge of accommodation throughout their life in general including experiences in the workplace.  Clearly displaying that your organization understands its role in being accessible, in a natural not necessarily showy, way is important in breaking down this barrier and attracting people with disabilities.  
2. Make sure your job advertisements and application are accessible.  If these materials are inaccessible, people with certain disabilities will be immediately left out.  Advertise in methods other than paper and make sure the electronic materials including application are accessible.  Hiring an outside consultant to review those electronic materials could prove beneficial.
3. Place a way for people to request accommodations as part of the job advertisement, including any paper versions, in a way that is clear and easily found.  It is important that people who need accommodations know how to access them in the application process and seeing that clearly displayed is also a good sign for the potential applicant that the organization will be ready to accommodate after employment is attained.

— Dr. Lance Alexis works for Middle Tennessee State University’s Office of Institutional Equity and Compliance as the Director of ADA Compliance.