College students with learning disabilities: A case study of female college students' description of their learning strategies for academic success

The purpose of this qualitative study focused on how female college students with a learning disability describe their learning strategies for academic success. The researcher aimed to find how students integrated strategies and resources that enable them to overcome the challenges faced in a college setting for academic success. A qualitative design was chosen for this study in an attempt to understand the nature of the experiences female college students with learning disabilities face at a four-year institution as they attempt to use strategies to help them in their individual programs of study. Braun and Clarke's (2006) six phase steps-by-step thematic analysis process, which consisted of familiarization, initial codes, themes, reviewing, defining, and reporting was used to identify themes and patterns. These themes and patterns lead to the students developing and improving the strategies they used in college. Eight participants were interviewed twice who met the criteria of having a learning disability, attended a four-year college, and had a 3.0 grade point average or above. The second interview was conducted for member checking to help validate the data's accuracy. Patterns and key themes emerged from the data during the analysis stage. The composite of all the participants themes included; focus on both external and internal resources for academic success, internal resources, establishing interpersonal supports, understanding and compensating for having a learning disability, planning and organization, and motivation and determination. The participants in this study developed strategies and different techniques to improve their learning experiences. The essence of the educational learning experiences of female college student's description of their learning strategies for academic success is presented.