2018

This article examines the nature of this online student experience with a focus on those aged 25 and over who are the first in their families to embark on university studies. Drawing on interviews conducted with both staff and students operating in this virtual space, as well as other related research and literature, this article offers recommendations to higher education institutions and educators on ways to improve retention and ongoing participation of this cohort.

This NCSEHE briefing note reports on domestic undergraduate equity student participation in Australian higher education from 2012 to 2017. It focuses on trends among domestic undergraduate enrolments in Table A provider institutions in identified equity groups. This briefing note uses 2012 as a base year of comparison for higher education equity student participation.

This article argues that a student partnership approach creates trust filled partnerships between staff and equity-seeking students. Forging genuine and collaborative partnerships within the equity and outreach space offers potential to both envision and create a university for all, rather than for just some. Professor O'Shea drew on her own experiences, practices, and research while contributing to the ongoing discourse in the emerging students-as-partners community.

We examine the educational and financial outcomes of students who start, but do not complete, a Bachelor-level course using data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics. We find that the number of non-completers is remarkably high, but also that the majority of Bachelor non-completers have completed some other form of tertiary-level qualification.

Governments have long sought to assess and reward higher education institutions for their performance. What constitutes performance and how should it be measured? This report focuses on why, and how, any effective performance model would incorporate principles of student equity.

A pilot was undertaken in one area of the university to identify possible indicators of first-year students’ non-engagement in the first semester and their possible impact on the first semester academic performance. The findings suggest that there are indeed some indicators that predict Grade Point Average at the end of the first semester.

This paper explores success factors contributing to the retention of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Higher Degree by Research (HDR) students. Interviews with Indigenous HDR graduates are analysed to explore inhibiting and success factors to completing an HDR. To address Indigenous student retention and success in higher education, finding out what contributes to successful HDR completions for Indigenous students across diverse disciplines is critical.

Report found improved access to higher education for asylum seekers is important for their individual wellbeing and their ability to contribute to society. The research examined some of the first Australia-wide data produced on the number of people seeking asylum who are currently participating in, or considering, higher education and how universities were supporting this.

Participation programs are demonstrably effective in stimulating university applications, but a sustained commitment is critical in maintaining consistent, long-term engagement, particularly in RRR schools. A review of a large-scale collaborative initiative recommended a tailored strategy to meet the higher costs of outreach programs in hard-to-reach areas, where students often see the decision to undertake tertiary study as a significant risk.

The aim of this study was to test whether academic encouragement supported students’ school satisfaction and increased their desire for, expectation of and belief in the possibility of university study and whether differences were evident depending on pathway of study: the ATAR pathway versus a Year 12 access enabling pathway program called TLC110.