Addressing the Leaking Pipeline: Supporting Disabled Graduate Student Teachers in Psychology

Introduction: People with disabilities are under-represented among psychology faculty and graduate students and are more likely than their non-disabled peers to attrite from psychology graduate programs. They face numerous barriers in graduate training. Statement of the Problem: Teaching experience is a core experience for psychology graduate students, especially those pursuing faculty positions. Disabled graduate students face many barriers that may make it difficult for them to obtain high-quality graduate student teaching experience. This contributes to the continuing under-representation of disabled faculty in psychology programs. Literature Review: I review key empirical and conceptual articles on the experiences of disabled psychology trainees and how to best support them. Teaching Implications: I provide evidence-based suggestions and strategies for supporting graduate students with disabilities as they obtain teaching experience. Conclusion: By actively supporting graduate students with disabilities in their teaching endeavors, psychology faculty can help stem the leaky pipeline and increase the numbers of psychology faculty with disabilities.