ABSTRACT
The purpose of this project is to conduct a RCT trial examining the efficacy of the TEACCH School Transition to Employment and Postsecondary Education (T-STEP) Program. 60 Community college students (18-21 years of age) with autism spectrum disorder will participate in either the T-STEP Program or manualized counseling services (career, academic, self-counseling) with both proximal (executive function, social communication, and emotion regulation) and distal (employment, postsecondary education success) outcomes measured. The long-term impact of this intervention is to promote a more positive quality of life for young adults with high functioning ASD including increased postsecondary education completion, employment, self-determination, and decreased difficulties with coping and depression. Due to the COVID-19 epidemic preventing in person interactions, we have adapted the protocol to conduct online interventions. This adapted protocol has received approval from all regulatory bodies and the adapted intervention and RCT trial will begin in the second year of funding.