Students who are the first in their family to pursue higher education face significant systemic disadvantages that could leave them behind without official recognition as an equity group, according to a major new Australian study.
The Stark Enrolment Divide
Research from the University of Queensland has uncovered a dramatic gap in university participation rates between first-generation students and their peers with university-educated parents. The comprehensive study analysed data from 443,609 people and found that first-in-family students had just a 36% likelihood of enrolling in an undergraduate degree.
This contrasts sharply with the 59% enrolment rate among students whose parents have tertiary education qualifications. According to report author Dr Tomasz Zajac, only people with disability face greater disadvantage in enrolment rates, at 31%.
Navigating Uncharted Territory
The challenges for first-generation students extend far beyond initial access to higher education. Dr Zajac emphasised that parental education proves more significant than economic factors in determining educational outcomes.
"First-in-family students find it harder to navigate the university system," Zajac explained. "You have to know how to apply, where to apply, what you can expect if you apply." These students often lack the guidance and institutional knowledge that families with university experience can provide.
Systemic Barriers and Elite Exclusion
The disadvantages continue even after enrolment. The research revealed that first-generation students are less likely to secure places at selective universities, with only 39% attending first-tier institutions compared to over half of their peers with university-educated parents.
"This is important because it means elite spaces remain exclusive," Zajac noted. First-generation students also tend to avoid both the most prestigious degrees like medicine and those with the lowest earning capacity, likely due to financial security concerns.
Education Minister Jason Clare, himself a first-generation university graduate, has previously spoken about his own background. "My mum and dad never even dreamt of going to university," he told a Universities Australia event in 2022, describing how his parents "grew up at a time when most working-class kids in Western Sydney didn't even finish school."
Call for Official Recognition and Support
Despite constituting approximately two-thirds of the student population, first-in-family students aren't currently recognised among Australia's six official disadvantaged groups in higher education policy.
Dr Zajac is urging the federal government to formally acknowledge this cohort as disadvantaged. Such recognition would enable financial support through grants and scholarships, provide admission advantages like adjustment factors, and allow for better tracking of student performance over time.
Professor Ian Li, Research and Policy Program Director of the Australian Centre for Student Equity and Success, supported these recommendations. "Students who do not have university educated parents make up a large part of the student population and often have to navigate the school and university systems without parental advice and role models," he said.
The researchers recommend implementing outreach and career counselling programs early in students' education journeys, complemented by additional mentoring and guidance once they arrive on campus.
