Strangers in paradise or losers in a rigged race? : non-traditional students in higher education

Research Seminar

With speaker Professor Diane Reay from the University of Cambridge.

Stratification across the field of higher education is increasing, generating extensive inequalities both within and between universities.

Working class students, for the most part, end up in universities seen to be 'second class; both by themselves and others. And as Bourdieu (1999, p. 423) asserts, 'after an extended school career, which often entails considerable sacrifice, the most culturally disadvantaged run the risk of ending up with a devalued degree'. Drawing on an ESRC funded study of working class students in four very different universities, I examine their experiences of higher education and the extent to which they succeed in fitting into unfamiliar fields. However, research also demonstrates the importance of context, the success stories of the very few working-class students who make it into UK elite universities, whilst welcomed, have little impact on the broader picture of continuing classed and racialised inequalities within the HE field.

A short rejoinder to this presentation will be provider by Professor Ann-Marie Bathmaker from the School of Education.

Cost: Free of Charge