The impact of regional diversity on higher education participation: A comparison of two Australian states

Abstract

Australian regional, rural, and remote (RRR) students are transitioning from school to university at lower rates than students in metropolitan areas. This paper examines the similarities and differences between the experiences of RRR secondary school students in South Australia (SA) and New South Wales (NSW) contemplating the transition to university study. Comparing findings from two studies, this paper investigates how the state in which a student lives and studies influences their attitudes and decisions about progressing to higher education (HE). In SA, the compounding effects of low incomes, considerable distances between regional and metropolitan centres, and a scarcity of HE infrastructure outside the capital city imposed more pressing challenges for RRR students than in NSW, where there are fewer remote and outer regional areas, yet more local campuses of large regional universities. This paper argues that a more nuanced national policy response to equity of access for RRR students is required—one that considers the various factors within each Australian state that impact upon the transition of RRR students from secondary school to HE.