The proportion of Australian university students from under-represented backgrounds has “barely moved” in more than a decade, federal Education Minister Jason Clare noted last week. About 15% of undergraduates came from low-socieconomic-status (SES) backgrounds in 2008, he said, and a target of 20% by 2020 was set. Today the figure is around 17%.
Since 2010, the Australian government has invested nearly A$1.5 billion in higher education equity programs. Yet participation and retention rates for the various equity groups remain stubbornly lower than for other students. Equity groups include students from low-SES backgrounds and regional and remote areas as well as Indigenous students and students with a disability.
