Summary:
- 79.4% of students with disabilities who receive accommodations said they could better manage large amounts of information, while study stress fell by 11.9% across the semester.
- Students with disabilities not receiving accommodations recorded a GPA rise of +0.51, a 17% increase over the semester, more than five times the overall average.
- 77.8% of students with mental health challenges receiving accommodations said they could better manage large amounts of information.
- Students with a mental health challenge who are not receiving accommodations saw a GPA rise of +0.28, an 8.8% increase, nearly triple the overall average, alongside an 11.6% drop in study stress.
The Learner Impact Report 2026 is our annual look at how Genio Notes is shaping student outcomes across higher education, surveying over 1000+ learners in the United States.
Within that data, is a sizable group of students navigating higher education alongside a disability or a mental health challenge. Some are formally supported by their institution, while many are not.
Their experiences sit at the intersection of academic demands and personal circumstance, and the kinds of support that help them succeed often look quite different from the support designed for the average learner.
Here, we take a closer look at four segments within this group:
- Students with a disability receiving accommodations.
- Students with a disability not receiving accommodations.
- Students with a mental health challenge receiving accommodations.
- Students with a mental health challenge not receiving accommodations.
Below, we unpack what this year’s data tells us about the role Genio Notes plays in each of these learners’ experiences.
To download Genio’s Learner Impact Report click here.
How Genio supports students with a disability who receive accommodations
Students with a disability who are receiving accommodations are the largest segment in this year’s Learner Impact Survey, making up 76.3% of all respondents.
The scale of this segment suggests that Genio Notes is being adopted at meaningful volume by learners who have already taken the often difficult step of disclosing their needs and putting formal support in place.
Their GPA rose by an average of +0.10, a 3.0% increase over the semester. 77.5% say they feel more confident in their note taking, and 79.4% report that they can better manage large amounts of information. 65.0% say Genio Notes has helped them achieve a better study-life balance, and their study stress dropped by 11.9% over the semester.
For students facing barriers to learning, these results show steady, meaningful progress shaped by factors often beyond their control.
“ADHD makes listening and writing difficult. With Genio, I do not have to worry about one of those two things. When I use Genio, I am able to devote all of my attention to the lecture.” - Krystle, Student at Arizona State University
“This has saved me an immense amount of time and stress. I’m remiss that I didn’t have this tool sooner in my school career, as it would have saved me so much time.” - Emily, Student at Arizona State University
“It’s really helpful for me while I navigate a late diagnosis.” - Andisa, Student at Bunker Hill Community College, Massachusetts
To learn more about how Genio supports disabled students click here.
How Genio supports students with a disability who are not receiving accommodations
The most striking finding in the entire dataset sits with this group. Students with a disability who aren’t currently receiving formal accommodations saw a GPA improvement of +0.51 over the semester, a 17% increase. That’s more than five times the overall average.
81.8% report a better study-life balance, and 72.7% find studying less stressful with Genio Notes. For a group that, by definition, isn’t being formally supported by their institution, these numbers are hard to look past this finding points to a much larger population than the numbers here represent.
Many students with a disability never disclose their needs at all, whether because of stigma, the complexity of the process, or a late diagnosis that hasn’t yet been formalised. For these students, Genio Notes is filling a gap and creating more positive learning experiences despite not receiving accommodations.
How Genio supports students with a mental health challenge who receive accommodations
Students with a mental health challenge who are receiving accommodations make up a substantial part of this year’s survey, and the data reflects the steady support Genio Notes can offer when academic demands and mental health pressures sit alongside one another.
77.8% say they can better manage large amounts of information, one of the highest scores for that metric across any segment in the dataset. 67.2% find studying less stressful with Genio Notes, and their GPA rose by an average of +0.11, a 3.2% increase over the semester.
For students whose challenges can make focus and information retention hard, having a reliable, structured way to capture and review learning removes a real source of anxiety.
“It takes a huge weight off my shoulders.” - Imaan, Student at George Mason University, Virginia
To learn more about how Genio supports students with mental health challenges click here.
How Genio supports students with a mental health challenge who are not receiving accommodations
These are students who haven’t accessed formal mental health support through their institution, or haven’t felt able to.
Their GPA rose by +0.28, an 8.8% increase over the semester, nearly triple the overall average. Their study stress dropped by 11.6%, and 64.7% find studying less stressful with Genio Notes.
For students who haven’t reached for formal support, or haven't felt able to, these numbers suggest Genio Notes is doing meaningful work in the background, helping them keep pace with their studies at a time when other things may feel harder to manage.
See how Genio Notes could support your students
The data from all the above segments of the student population tells a consistent story. Whether students are formally supported by their institution or navigating their studies without that scaffolding, a small piece of steady support can be quietly transformative, with better grades, less stress, and the confidence to keep going.
Book a demo to see Genio Notes in action and our team can walk you through what Genio Notes looks like in practice, share how other institutions have rolled it out, and help you think through what support for your students with additional needs might look like.
