Supporting Autistic students to thrive at university

Posted on: 8 January 2026 by Eli Saetnan in 2026

What does it mean to create a truly inclusive learning environment, one where all students have the opportunity to thrive? And what does it take to thrive as an Autistic student at university?

These are questions we explore in this podcast episode with Vanessa Marensi, a pharmacology lecturer, and Amber Calby, a pharmacology graduate.

I met Vanessa when she was a participant on our PGCAP programme here at Liverpool. She was interested in exploring research on supporting autistic students at university, drawing on a recent experience of supporting Amber, an autistic student, in her own classroom.

Vanessa is currently a lecturer in Pharmacology at Bangor University and honorary lecturer here at Liverpool. Amber recently graduated with a Distinction in Pharmacology from the University of Chester and has now enrolled in a Master's degree at the same institution. Vanessa mentored Amber while delivering some teaching at Chester and supported Amber to present her scientific work in local meetings. Building on that initial mentoring, the two of them worked together to identify strategies to improve the student experience.

This turned into a very fruitful collaboration exploring the research literature in light of Amber's lived experience as an Autistic student. In this podcast episode, I had the opportunity to speak with them about how that collaboration came about and what their key recommendations are based on that research. I found it very helpful to learn more about Amber's experience as a student, both in terms of what she found challenging and what really supported her. I also found it very heartening to hear what she has been able to accomplish with the right support. A key message I took away from this conversation is to not be afraid to ask students what support they need, but also the importance of truly listening to students when they describe their experiences and to think creatively about how we can adapt our learning environments to our students and not the other way around.