Written by Dr Ian W Li1, Dr David R Carroll2, Professor Denise Jackson3
There have been expansionary policies aimed at widening participation in higher education
in developed countries worldwide. In Australia, increasing participation among
underrepresented groups is a national priority. This has led to the formation of six official
student equity groups whose access, participation, and outcomes in higher education have
been specifically targeted since 2008. More recently, the development of alternative entry
pathways has been encouraged to boost higher education enrolments among these equity
groups. There is, however, relatively scarce evidence on trends in admission to university
study through alternative pathways and on the comparative outcomes of students from
various pathways.
This study aimed to fill these policy gaps and addressed four research questions:
1. What are the proportions of students entering undergraduate study through
Australian Tertiary Admission Rank (ATAR) and non-ATAR pathways in Australian
universities?
2. What are the proportions, numbers, and trends over time—by equity group status—of
those who access university education through non-ATAR and ATAR pathways?
3. How are equity students from non-ATAR pathways distributed across courses, and
are there observable trends and patterns?
4. Do student outcomes (retention, progression, student experience, academic
performance, work readiness) differ based on the type of entry pathway and equity
group status?
Read the full report at Equity implications of non-ATAR pathways: Participation, academic outcomes, and student experience
1University of Western Australia
2Monash University
3Edith Cowan University
