industry & reform
Freedom of choice
How students ’ socioeconomic background could be turning them away from university .
Michael Dockery interviewed by Wade Zaglas
Accessing a university education is nowhere near as competitive or elitist as it was in times gone by , with institutions taking into account a number of factors when assessing applicants ’ suitability for courses in the spirit of social justice and equality .
However , according to a recent study co-authored by Professor Michael Dockery from Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre , the difference in accessing careers information differs quite considerably depending on whether senior secondary students ( years 11 and 12 ) come from a high or low socioeconomic background . Not only are students from higher socioeconomic backgrounds , on average , exposed to more careers information , they are also more likely to speak to a careers advisor and attend university information sessions . For them , “ university is almost the default position ”.
In contrast , students hailing from lower socioeconomic backgrounds are less likely to have as much access to careers information , including information regarding university entry and the opportunity to speak to a careers advisor . The study also found that such students are more likely to attend TAFE information centres and receive careers information about more “ non-professional vocations ”.
Dockery puts this down to a “ difference in social capital ”, which universities are addressing more with university outreach programs . He adds that it ’ s critical all students “ receive equal access to information ” and student “ expectations and aspirations ” should not be reduced based on such factors .
ER : What were the main findings in regard to access to career information for Australian secondary students of different socioeconomic backgrounds ? MD : What we found is that there ’ s quite a divide . If you look in terms of attending a university information session , then students from higher socioeconomic backgrounds are more likely to have access to those sorts of information sessions . But that ’ s also true for the opportunity to talk to a careers advisor ,
14 | educationreview . com . au