Students from lower class backgrounds often don’t apply to higher education with the risk of facing the ‘working-class dilemma’ as choosing higher education can be viewed as ‘leaving your roots behind’ to family or peers who did not attend university. Other reasons include the ‘hidden curriculum’ of lower income students not having access to networking opportunities and internships or most commonly the financial burden of university.
It doesn’t just stop at the opportunity gap faced by students applying and being accepted to university.
Lower income students often are required to get a part time role alongside their studies and in some cases, full time.
Research by the NUS found that 68% of students take part time work alongside their university degree. Most of these being students of a lower income, estranged or care leavers. This is especially the case as those from higher income backgrounds have parental support to fall back on, whereas lower income students don't have this luxury.
The University of Edinburgh conducted a study where they found that students report that their academic commitments start being affected when students undertake more than 11 hours a week. For students, 11 hours a week is barely enough to help bridge the gap between the maintenance loan and their rent, as the study also found that students work on average 18 hours of work a week to financially support themselves.
Barry Will, president of the student association at St Andrews University, said part-time work was now "absolutely essential to survive."
However, some universities such as Oxford and Cambridge, don’t even allow students to undertake part time work, this automatically gives lower income students less access to certain institutions. Newcastle University’s own website says, ‘students can work a maximum of 20 hours per week in term time’. Restrictions like this put lower income students at the disadvantage every time and even deter students from applying to universities.
...it is not possible to join sports societies, the socials are described as something that you cannot skip regularly, this makes all the hours impossible for working students.
In addition to academic impairment to working students, the social impact of part time work is also vast. Students who don’t partake in extracurricular activities at universities, such as societies, are at higher risk of not making friends and engaging in the university community and life. UK Government research found that 42% of students reported that joining a society or club was the most helpful action they took in combating loneliness at university. Although lower income students who require part time work to survive have a harder time finding space in their schedule for these activities. A quote from an undergraduate student from another Russell Group University stated that: “It is not possible to join sports societies, the socials are described as something that you cannot skip regularly, this makes all the hours impossible for working students.”
Alongside this, other barriers that lower income students face - that widens the opportunity gap - is the different socialisation of lower income students to those of a higher income. This is as educational institutions, such as Newcastle University, are built on middle-class language, values and behaviours which is often referred to as a habitus.
However, students from lower income and working class backgrounds may feel like cultural outsiders as the socialisation they were raised with does not align with institutional expectations. This then creates a wider gap between lower income and higher income students as research from Manchester University shows the students whose habitus didn’t align with the universities expectations were often deterred from certain societies and other opportunities such as internships.
The opportunities gap between higher and lower income students is vast and undeniable. Social mobility schemes often help with the problem, however they don’t do enough and aren’t highly promoted. Anyone facing financial hardship at Newcastle University can find further information regarding financial information on the link below.
https://www.ncl.ac.uk/undergraduate/fees-funding/scholarships-bursaries/