How do I manage ADHD at university?

Register with your university’s disability service for Equality Act reasonable adjustments, then apply to Student Finance England for Disabled Students’ Allowance to fund a specialist mentor and assistive technology. These are two separate systems that you switch on at the same time, not one queue you wait in. This works whether you have a formal ADHD diagnosis or a strong suspicion you have ADHD and are struggling now.

First: tell the disability service and ask for adjustments

Email your university’s disability or wellbeing service today and ask to register and to put reasonable adjustments in place. Under the Equality Act 2010 (section 20), a university has to make reasonable adjustments so that a disabled student is not put at a substantial disadvantage. ADHD counts where it has a substantial, long-term effect on your day-to-day activities, and the test is the practical impact, not a label. So you do not need a formal diagnosis to start, and most universities will not insist on one before offering support. The duty is also anticipatory (Schedule 13), which means the university is meant to plan for disabled students in advance, so the support already exists. You are switching it on, not inventing it. Typical adjustments include extra time in exams, deadline flexibility, lecture recordings and notes in advance.

At the same time: apply for DSA

In parallel, apply to Student Finance England for Disabled Students’ Allowance (DSA), the grant that funds the support a tutor cannot. For 2025/26 and held at the same figure for 2026/27, DSA is a single combined allowance of up to £27,783 in England. It is a grant, not a loan, so you never repay it, and it is not based on your household income. After you apply you attend a DSA needs assessment, a relaxed conversation that recommends your specific support. DSA can then pay for:

• A specialist mentor and a study-skills tutor, funded through the non-medical helper support after your needs assessment.
• Assistive technology, such as a recommended computer and software, plus training to use it.
• Disability-related travel and other study costs your ADHD creates.

The catch DSA adds that adjustments do not: DSA needs medical evidence of disability, such as a diagnostic report or a letter from your GP or consultant. If you are still waiting for an ADHD assessment, you can apply now and be paid once the evidence lands, but the evidence is the gate. If you had an EHC plan at school or college, note it does not carry into university: section 83 of the Children and Families Act 2014 excludes higher education, so DSA plus Equality Act adjustments replace it.

If it stalls or you are struggling now

If the disability service is slow or refuses an adjustment, ask for the decision in writing and escalate through the university’s formal complaints process; you can also raise it with the Office of the Independent Adjudicator once you have a final response. If you are overwhelmed, sliding into burnout, or in distress this term, contact your university’s wellbeing or counselling service and your GP. If you need to talk to someone right now, you can call Samaritans free on 116 123, any time of day or night. You can do this in parallel with everything above.

Two pieces that pair with this: how to register with disability support and how to cope with burnout at university.

This page is general information, not clinical or legal advice.