This article is sponsored by ADHD Ireland.
A free six-week self-development program is currently open to students with ADHD. ADHD Ireland has designed a programme specifically for students with ADHD enrolled in third-level education institutions across Ireland, the ‘University Understanding and Managing Adult ADHD Programme’ (UniMAAP). Running eight separate times from January to February 2025, this virtual course aims to help students with ADHD “thrive in university and other third-level education institutions”.
The programme welcomes students eighteen years and over – undergraduate and postgraduate – who either self-identify or have a formal ADHD diagnosis. The programme is accessible to students, regardless of whether they are registered with their school’s disability service.
Facilitated by experts, including Dr. Chrisitina Seery, a neurotypical researcher with a PhD in ADHD, and Aisling Leonard-Curtin, a senior psychologist and an Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) trainer with ADHD, the course combines psychoeducation or learning about ADHD with therapeutic strategies based on ACT. They describe ACT as an approach that promotes the idea that psychological distress emerges from fighting against unwanted thoughts or feelings. Dr Seery shares that “ACT allows us to respond in new ways to unwanted thoughts and feelings, and connect with what matters to us in life.”
Each session incorporates interactive components allowing students to engage in reflective guidebook exercises and “connect with others in the group via the chat and optional breakout rooms.” Dr. Seery and Leonard-Curtin, both with personal experience with ADHD – like the other UniMAAP facilitators, describe the sense of community created by these connections as “invaluable and empowering”.
Sessions also cover optional home practices and many ADHD-related coping strategies, including a “selection of audio, video, and written resources”.
The programme is based on ADHD Ireland’s Understanding and Managing Adult ADHD Programme (UMAAP), and adapted specifically for students with ADHD. When evaluated by researchers at the School of Psychology at University College Dublin, UMAAP was found to be highly beneficial with over 90% of participants reporting that they found the sessions helpful. Following the sessions participants experienced improved quality of life, an increased knowledge of ADHD, increased psychological flexibility, and improved self-acceptance.
Students interested in joining can sign up for the UniMAAP registration form, HERE. Once registered they will be contacted to arrange their preferred date and times.
UniMAAP is a collaboration between ADHD Ireland, University College Dublin’s School of Psychology, and the Health Service Executive’s National Clinical Programme for ADHD in Adults. UniMAAP is kindly funded by ReThink Ireland.
