What We
Study

The Access Lab studies engineering education from a systems lens, with attention to the lived experiences of students and the structures that shape access, participation, and belonging. Our work examines how engineering environments, cultural norms, design, and policies and practices influence who is supported in engineering and under what conditions.

Our research spans accessibility and disability in engineering education, undergraduate student experiences, and sociotechnical design. Across these areas, we use design-based research and critical methodologies to understand barriers, examine how inequities are produced and maintained, and develop approaches that support more accessible and equitable learning environments.

We approach the system of engineering education as complex and interconnected. Questions about disability, identity, design, and student experience are inseparable from the systems in which they occur. Our goal is to advance research that deepens understanding, challenges hegemonic structures that create and reproduce barriers to access and participation, and supports more responsive learning environments.