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One of the biggest concerns for many from economically disadvantaged backgrounds, when it comes to higher education, is there’s a gamble involved. A big risk of both time & money, to HOPEFULLY gain the kind of opportunity to then have a solid career & financial stability.
Many people can’t live at home while they study, the financial burden on families who just don’t have the resources is too much. So you’re forced to choose between living in poverty, working & studying simultaneously, to HOPEFULLY make the 3-4 years, graduate & get employed..
Or choose immediate opportunities such as a role like retail management, leadership roles within fast food. Which I’m not throwing shade at, but long term they won’t help you break through the financial disadvantage you’ve been born in to. And buying a home is really tough.
So when we talk to people about higher education, especially if their goals are as simple - yet currently out of reach - as becoming a home owner, perhaps the first in their family, they absolutely care about the debt involved with study. You have HECS but you also have living
When you’re first in family to ever engage in higher education, and if you’re from a low SES position, it’s difficult to get high scores for entry, & it’s difficult to take the risk of racking up massive debt when you’re not sure you can do this (imposter syndrome is rife)
Which is why the Bachelor of Arts is such an excellent degree. It isn’t the most expensive, it has room for trying out different subjects & it can feel ‘achievable’ when you’re absolutely risking so much & are terrified of failing when no one you know has been to university.
I wanted to be a lawyer. I’ve shared how that goal got me to stay in school even through homelessness. But my first degree is a Bachelor of Arts. I ended up majoring in English & Creative Arts, which primed me to then take on a Masters in Teaching when I was done. The BA taught
me so much, showed me the systems, let me in to new worlds, it set me up as a young woman from a very difficult background to understand that I could actually ‘do’ higher education & it WAS worth the financial risk - it’s paid off.
But had it cost 90k? I’d have never started.
But had it cost 90k? I’d have never started.
BArts aren’t just for lounging & pondering philosophy, they’re not ‘nothing’ degrees. They’re strong foundational courses that give you the tools, the understandings & the opportunities of higher education - I’d argue they’re the most accessible doorway for disadvantaged peoples
The first research project I ever worked on in a professional capacity (2016/2017) specifically spoke to these points. While usually I share my non-academic translation pieces, this project did result in a report which is open access. p12/p13 highlight role of costs in decisions
Gruppetta, M, Southgate, E., Ober, R., Cameron, L., Fischetti, J., Thunig, A., Heath, T., & Clifton, S. (2018). Yarning the way: The role of Indigenous paraprofessionals in guiding the post-school educational pathways of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander youth.
Newcastle: UoN
Newcastle: UoN
