University Scoring – Johns Hopkins University Disability Health Research Center

Background

This scoring system was created to allow comparisons between universities based on metrics of accessibility and disability inclusion. Scoring was limited to information publicly available on university websites, as that is the information available to potential applicants. While this dashboard does not assess every aspect of disability inclusion, nor does a favorable score ensure an inclusive student experience, it identifies areas for improvement and can be used to track progress in publicly provided information. See the University Rankings page for summary results, and the methodology paper for further details.

Scoring criteria were based on policies, practices, and legal requirements that support disability inclusion and accessibility. Under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), all programs of postsecondary institutions must be accessible to students with disabilities. The ADA requires almost all postsecondary institutions to have a disability services coordinator and grievance procedures that ensure concerns with accommodation requests are managed fairly, timely, and equitably. The Rehabilitation Act mandates that all institutions receiving federal funding ensure that people with disabilities have equal access to programs, services, and activities, including websites. Compliance with the ADA and Rehabilitation Act intends to guard against discrimination on the basis of disability but often is not enough for equitable inclusion. Therefore, scoring criteria were not based on legal compliance alone.

Table 2. The Johns Hopkins Disability Health Research Center (DHRC) University Disability Inclusion Scoring Data and National Institutes of Health (NIH) Funding for Undergraduate Universities, November 2021

Accessibility

Public Image

Accommodations

Grievance

Accessibility

wdt_ID	Funding Rank	University	NIH Funding (FY $, 2020)	Accessibility Total (20 points)	Built Environment (10 points)	Virtual Environment (10 points)
1	1	JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY	$807,432,003	10	5	5
2	2	UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES	$673,201,228	20	10	10
3	3	UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN AT ANN ARBOR	$641,965,656	10	0	10
4	4	DUKE UNIVERSITY	$607,172,798	15	5	10
5	5	UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA	$593,605,914	20	10	10
6	6	UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH AT PITTSBURGH	$570,146,095	15	5	10
7	7	STANFORD UNIVERSITY	$560,644,462	20	10	10
8	8	YALE UNIVERSITY	$550,947,887	20	10	10
9	9	WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY	$533,594,881	20	10	10
10	10	UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON	$533,302,350	15	10	5
11	11	UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO	$524,978,793	10	5	5
12	12	UNIV OF NORTH CAROLINA CHAPEL HILL	$511,185,245	20	10	10
13	13	EMORY UNIVERSITY	$507,546,965	15	5	10
14	14	NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY AT CHICAGO	$367,414,121	5	0	5
15	15	UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA	$340,417,756	20	10	10
16	16	UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-MADISON	$338,121,506	20	10	10
17	17	UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA AT BIRMINGHAM	$325,573,502	15	5	10
18	18	UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA	$324,592,664	10	5	5
19	19	OREGON HEALTH & SCIENCE UNIVERSITY	$304,670,088	0	0	0
20	20	UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO DENVER	$292,134,808	10	0	10
21	21	UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT DAVIS	$254,622,553	10	5	5
22	22	UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO	$246,330,700	20	10	10
23	23	OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY	$241,268,189	5	0	5
24	24	INDIANA UNIV-PURDUE UNIV AT INDIANAPOLIS	$232,986,943	20	10	10
25	25	UNIVERSITY OF UTAH	$228,951,281	15	5	10
	Funding Rank	University	NIH Funding (FY $, 2020)	Accessibility Total (20 points)	Built Environment (10 points)	Virtual Environment (10 points)

Public Image

wdt_ID	Funding Rank	University	NIH Funding (FY $, 2020)	Public Image Total (20 points)	Student Disability Office Statement (10 points)	Statistics on Disabled Students, Staff, Faculty (10 points)
1	1	JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY	$807,432,003	5	5	0
2	2	UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES	$673,201,228	10	10	0
3	3	UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN AT ANN ARBOR	$641,965,656	10	10	0
4	4	DUKE UNIVERSITY	$607,172,798	10	10	0
5	5	UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA	$593,605,914	10	10	0
6	6	UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH AT PITTSBURGH	$570,146,095	10	10	0
7	7	STANFORD UNIVERSITY	$560,644,462	15	10	5
8	8	YALE UNIVERSITY	$550,947,887	10	10	0
9	9	WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY	$533,594,881	10	10	0
10	10	UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON	$533,302,350	15	10	5
11	11	UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO	$524,978,793	10	10	0
12	12	UNIV OF NORTH CAROLINA CHAPEL HILL	$511,185,245	10	5	5
13	13	EMORY UNIVERSITY	$507,546,965	10	5	5
14	14	NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY AT CHICAGO	$367,414,121	10	10	0
15	15	UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA	$340,417,756	10	10	0
16	16	UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-MADISON	$338,121,506	15	10	5
17	17	UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA AT BIRMINGHAM	$325,573,502	10	10	0
18	18	UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA	$324,592,664	10	10	0
19	19	OREGON HEALTH & SCIENCE UNIVERSITY	$304,670,088	5	5	0
20	20	UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO DENVER	$292,134,808	5	5	0
21	21	UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT DAVIS	$254,622,553	10	5	5
22	22	UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO	$246,330,700	10	10	0
23	23	OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY	$241,268,189	10	10	0
24	24	INDIANA UNIV-PURDUE UNIV AT INDIANAPOLIS	$232,986,943	10	10	0
25	25	UNIVERSITY OF UTAH	$228,951,281	10	10	0
	Funding Rank	University	NIH Funding (FY $, 2020)	Public Image Total (20 points)	Student Disability Office Statement (10 points)	Statistics on Disabled Students, Staff, Faculty (10 points)

Accommodations

wdt_ID	Funding Rank	University	NIH Funding (FY $, 2020)	Accommodations Total (50 points)	Accommodations Contact Information (10 points)	Accommodations Confidentiality (10 points)	Student Accommodations Rights and Responsibilities (10 points)	Faculty Accommodations Rights and Responsibilities (10 points)	Timeline for Accommodations (10 points)
1	1	JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY	$807,432,003	40	10	5	5	10	10
2	2	UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES	$673,201,228	50	10	10	10	10	10
3	3	UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN AT ANN ARBOR	$641,965,656	30	10	10	5	0	5
4	4	DUKE UNIVERSITY	$607,172,798	30	10	10	10	0	0
5	5	UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA	$593,605,914	35	10	10	0	5	10
6	6	UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH AT PITTSBURGH	$570,146,095	25	10	10	5	0	0
7	7	STANFORD UNIVERSITY	$560,644,462	40	10	10	10	10	0
8	8	YALE UNIVERSITY	$550,947,887	20	10	10	0	0	0
9	9	WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY	$533,594,881	30	10	10	0	0	10
10	10	UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON	$533,302,350	45	10	10	5	10	10
11	11	UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO	$524,978,793	25	10	5	0	0	10
12	12	UNIV OF NORTH CAROLINA CHAPEL HILL	$511,185,245	20	10	0	0	0	10
13	13	EMORY UNIVERSITY	$507,546,965	35	10	10	0	5	10
14	14	NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY AT CHICAGO	$367,414,121	45	10	5	10	10	10
15	15	UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA	$340,417,756	20	5	5	10	0	0
16	16	UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-MADISON	$338,121,506	20	10	10	0	0	0
17	17	UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA AT BIRMINGHAM	$325,573,502	45	10	10	5	10	10
18	18	UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA	$324,592,664	40	10	10	10	10	0
19	19	OREGON HEALTH & SCIENCE UNIVERSITY	$304,670,088	35	10	10	5	0	10
20	20	UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO DENVER	$292,134,808	30	10	10	10	0	0
21	21	UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT DAVIS	$254,622,553	30	10	10	0	0	10
22	22	UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO	$246,330,700	40	10	10	10	10	0
23	23	OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY	$241,268,189	35	10	10	5	5	5
24	24	INDIANA UNIV-PURDUE UNIV AT INDIANAPOLIS	$232,986,943	20	10	10	0	0	0
25	25	UNIVERSITY OF UTAH	$228,951,281	35	5	10	10	10	0
	Funding Rank	University	NIH Funding (FY $, 2020)	Accommodations Total (50 points)	Accommodations Contact Information (10 points)	Accommodations Confidentiality (10 points)	Student Accommodations Rights and Responsibilities (10 points)	Faculty Accommodations Rights and Responsibilities (10 points)	Timeline for Accommodations (10 points)

Grievance

wdt_ID	Funding Rank	University	NIH Funding (FY $, 2020)	Grievance Policy Total (10 points)	Grievance Policy Management (10 points)
1	1	JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY	$807,432,003	10	10
2	2	UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES	$673,201,228	10	10
3	3	UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN AT ANN ARBOR	$641,965,656	0	0
4	4	DUKE UNIVERSITY	$607,172,798	5	5
5	5	UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA	$593,605,914	5	5
6	6	UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH AT PITTSBURGH	$570,146,095	10	10
7	7	STANFORD UNIVERSITY	$560,644,462	10	10
8	8	YALE UNIVERSITY	$550,947,887	0	0
9	9	WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY	$533,594,881	0	0
10	10	UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON	$533,302,350	10	10
11	11	UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO	$524,978,793	10	10
12	12	UNIV OF NORTH CAROLINA CHAPEL HILL	$511,185,245	10	10
13	13	EMORY UNIVERSITY	$507,546,965	10	10
14	14	NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY AT CHICAGO	$367,414,121	10	10
15	15	UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA	$340,417,756	10	10
16	16	UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-MADISON	$338,121,506	5	5
17	17	UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA AT BIRMINGHAM	$325,573,502	10	10
18	18	UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA	$324,592,664	10	10
19	19	OREGON HEALTH & SCIENCE UNIVERSITY	$304,670,088	10	10
20	20	UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO DENVER	$292,134,808	10	10
21	21	UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT DAVIS	$254,622,553	10	10
22	22	UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO	$246,330,700	10	10
23	23	OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY	$241,268,189	10	10
24	24	INDIANA UNIV-PURDUE UNIV AT INDIANAPOLIS	$232,986,943	10	10
25	25	UNIVERSITY OF UTAH	$228,951,281	10	10
	Funding Rank	University	NIH Funding (FY $, 2020)	Grievance Policy Total (10 points)	Grievance Policy Management (10 points)

Table 3. WebAIM Website Accessibility Scores and National Institutes of Health (NIH) Funding for Undergraduate Universities, November 2021 (higher scores indicate better accessibility)

wdt_ID	Funding Rank	University	NIH Funding (FY $, 2020)	Website Accessibility Rank	Total Score	Automated Score	Manual Score	Home Page URL
1	1	JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY	$807,432,003	48	6.23	4.90	7.56	https://www.jhu.edu/
2	2	UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES	$673,201,228	7	8.56	8.90	8.21	https://www.ucla.edu/
3	3	UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN AT ANN ARBOR	$641,965,656	35	7.55	7.20	7.90	https://umich.edu/
4	4	DUKE UNIVERSITY	$607,172,798	16	8.29	8.60	7.98	https://duke.edu
5	5	UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA	$593,605,914	4	8.85	8.90	8.80	https://www.upenn.edu/
6	6	UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH AT PITTSBURGH	$570,146,095	35	7.55	7.30	7.79	https://www.pitt.edu/
7	7	STANFORD UNIVERSITY	$560,644,462	13	8.32	8.00	8.64	https://www.stanford.edu
8	8	YALE UNIVERSITY	$550,947,887	39	7.47	6.00	8.94	https://www.yale.edu
9	9	WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY	$533,594,881	2	8.92	9.00	8.84	https://wustl.edu
10	10	UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON	$533,302,350	45	6.63	6.20	7.06	https://www.washington.edu
11	11	UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO	$524,978,793	49	5.97	4.50	7.43	https://ucsd.edu
12	12	UNIV OF NORTH CAROLINA CHAPEL HILL	$511,185,245	25	7.82	7.10	8.53	https://www.unc.edu
13	13	EMORY UNIVERSITY	$507,546,965	23	7.88	7.30	8.45	http://www.emory.edu/home/index.html
14	14	NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY AT CHICAGO	$367,414,121	47	6.25	5.20	7.30	https://www.northwestern.edu/
15	15	UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA	$340,417,756	10	8.43	8.90	7.96	https://twin-cities.umn.edu
16	16	UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-MADISON	$338,121,506	5	8.78	8.90	8.66	https://www.wisc.edu
17	17	UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA AT BIRMINGHAM	$325,573,502	28	7.72	7.20	8.23	https://www.uab.edu/home/
18	18	UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA	$324,592,664	46	6.40	7.00	5.80	https://www.usc.edu
19	19	OREGON HEALTH & SCIENCE UNIVERSITY	$304,670,088	50	3.65	1.10	6.19	https://www.ohsu.edu
20	20	UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO DENVER	$292,134,808	12	8.34	8.20	8.48	https://www.ucdenver.edu/
21	21	UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT DAVIS	$254,622,553	41	7.00	7.30	6.69	https://www.ucdavis.edu
22	22	UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO	$246,330,700	1	9.07	8.90	9.24	https://www.uchicago.edu
23	23	OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY	$241,268,189	42	6.89	6.00	7.78	https://www.osu.edu
24	24	INDIANA UNIV-PURDUE UNIV AT INDIANAPOLIS	$232,986,943	11	8.40	8.80	8.00	https://www.iupui.edu
25	25	UNIVERSITY OF UTAH	$228,951,281	15	8.31	8.20	8.41	https://www.utah.edu
	Funding Rank	University	NIH Funding (FY $, 2020)	Website Accessibility Rank	Total Score	Automated Score	Manual Score	Home Page URL

Methodology

Table 2 shows the data collected for each university. Each university’s score is the sum of the four sub-categories, as outlined below.

Accessibility of the built and virtual environment: 20 total points

Built environment: assessed if campus maps outline accessible paths, bathrooms, parking, and entrances.

A university scored 10 points if 3-4 of these criteria listed above are marked on a publicly available campus map.
A university scored 5 points if 1-2 of the criteria are marked on a publicly available campus map.
A university scored 0 points if available campus maps do not include any of this accessibility information.

Virtual environment: aassessed website accessibility and the impact on users with disabilities (Table 3). WebAIM conducted automated and manual testing of university websites. The total website accessibility scores are the average of the automated and manual scores. Total scores were categorized into three groups based on tertile cut-points derived from a separate dataset of 1 million websites. Higher scores indicate better accessibility.

A school received 10 points if its total web accessibility score was 7 or above.
A school received 5 points if its total web accessibility score was below 7 and at or above 4.3
A school received 0 points if its total web accessibility score was below 4.3

Public image of disability inclusion: 20 total points

Disability accommodation office statements: assessed compliance of student disability accommodation statements with the ADA and the Rehabilitation Act. Only statements listed on disability services office websites were reviewed.

A university scored 10 points if the disability accommodation office statement included encouraging or supportive language.
A university scored 5 points if the disability accommodation office statement only included the required ADA and Rehabilitation Act compliance language.
A university scored 0 points if there was not a disability accommodation office statement.

Statistics on disabled students, staff, and faculty: assessed the availability of statistics on university or disability services websites or on admissions websites when presented with other protected class information.

A university scored 10 points if statistics on student, staff, and faculty with disabilities were publicly available.
A university scored 5 points if only statistics on students with disabilities were publicly available.
A university scored 0 points if statistics on student, staff, and faculty with disabilities were not publicly available.

Accommodation request processes and procedures: 50 total points

Only university disability accommodation office websites were searched for this information. Contact information: assessed the available contact information for students to obtain disability accommodations.

A university scored 10 points if the disability accommodation office website lists a telephone number and email address, or includes a method to register for accommodations.
A university scored 5 points if the disability accommodation office website lists only a telephone number or an email address to register for accommodations.
A university scored 0 points if the disability accommodation office website does not include information on how to register for accommodations.

Confidentiality in the disability accommodation process: assessed statements outlining who was responsible for maintaining confidentiality during the accommodation process.

A university scored 10 points for having disability accommodations confidentiality statements and information about who must maintain this confidentiality.
A university scored 5 points for having disability accommodations confidentiality statements, but no information about who must maintain this confidentiality.
A university scored 0 points for not having disability accommodations confidentiality statements and no information about who must maintain this confidentiality.

Rights and responsibilities of students and disability service staff: assessed the availability of information about the rights and responsibilities of students and disability services staff during the accommodation process.

A university scored 10 points if the rights and responsibilities of students and accessibility services staff are listed on the accommodation services office websites.
A university scored 5 points if the rights or responsibilities of students and accessibility services staff are listed on the accommodation services office websites.
A university scored 0 points if the rights and responsibilities of students and accessibility services staff are not listed on the accommodation services office websites.

Rights and responsibilities of faculty: assessed the availability of information about the rights and responsibilities of faculty during the student accommodation process.

A university scored 10 points if the rights and responsibilities of faculty are listed on the accommodation services office websites.
A university scored 5 points if the rights or responsibilities of faculty are listed on the accommodation services office websites.
A university scored 0 points if the rights and responsibilities of faculty are not listed on the accommodation services office websites.

Timeline for disability accommodations: assessed information about the timeline for requesting and approving disability accommodations.

A university scored 10 points if there is a flexible timeframe for submitting accommodation requests and a timeline for responding to requests.
A university scored 5 points if there is a fixed timeframe for submitting accommodation requests, but a timeline for responding to requests is not provided.
A university scored 0 points if there is not a timeline for requesting and receiving accommodations.

Grievance Policy: 10 total points

Disability-related grievance policies: aassessed the policies to manage grievances with disability discrimination and availability of information about grievance policies on disability services or equivalent websites.

A university scored 10 points if a third party manages grievances, and information about the grievance policy was available on the disability services or equivalent website.
A university scored 5 points if a third party manages grievances, but information about the grievance policy was not available on the disability services or equivalent website.
A university scored 0 points if the disability services office manages grievances, or information about the grievance policy was not available on the disability services or equivalent website.

Limitations

These scores and NIH funding may change over time. Data was abstracted and adjudicated on a rolling basis between June and November 2021 and may not capture current university information or accessibility indicators.

These data only include information about policies, procedures, and accessibility that is publicly available on university websites. While this dashboard does not assess every aspect of disability inclusion, nor does a favorable score ensure an inclusive student experience, it identifies areas for improvement and can be used to track progress in publicly provided information.

Citation

The use of data, figures, or graphs from this dashboard should be cited as: The Johns Hopkins Disability Health Research Center University Disability Inclusion Dashboard. 2021. https://disabilityhealth.jhu.edu/

Contact Information

If you have questions or need the data in an alternate accessible format, contact us at: [email protected].