What Is Self-Advocacy?

According to the National Technical Assistance Center on Transition : The Collaborative (NTACT:C), self-determination and self-advocacy are used interchangeably.  Yet in education and many other disability and research disciplines, self-advocacy is one element of self-determination. 

Self-advocacy refers to an individual’s ability to effectively communicate, convey, negotiate or assert their own interests and desires. It includes having self- awareness, exploring interests and speaking up for oneself.  The development of self-advocacy skills should be started at an early age.  These skills are needed in education, workplaces and community settings (WINTAC, 2020).  

Self-Determination is the ability for individuals to make their own decisions and freely choose and cause things to happen in their own life.  Self-advocacy is a component of self-determination.

As educators, empowering students with disabilities to participate in decisions and plans that impact their life after high school will lead to greater lifelong self-determination.  Developing the skills for students with disabilities to advocate for themselves by representing their own views and interests to influence the direction of their lives by actively participating in the decision-making process is of utmost importance.  These practices are identified as a research-based predictor of post-school success for students with disabilities and are included in the NTACT:C Predictors of Post School Success Evidence Chart developed by the National Technical Assistance Center on Transition (NTACT).         

To learn more about self-determination, the Transition Coalition offers a module that provides a general knowledge of self-determination, and a framework for providing self-determination instruction. To view this module, create an account on the Transition Coalition website.

Access the module here:

Transition Coalition Module on The Essentials of Self-Determination