An analysis of school pupils’ (with low social economic status) perceptions of university, regarding programmes of study

Abstract

Through its “Aim Higher Project” and “Excellence Challenge Programmes”, the UK government is investing large sums of money into widening participation so that more school leavers stay on to study for higher education (HE) courses, especially those from lower social classes and ethnic groups. Universities are increasingly developing links with local schools and creating novel ways of enhancing these relationships. Nevertheless, as the costs of attending university rise, it may be difficult to widen access especially amongst those “less wealthy” young people which universities are desperate to attract and enrol, due to the more lucrative government funding that the universities will receive. The main aim of the research is to report research findings from a case study incorporating Year 11 pupils (n = 38) from an inner city school (placed second on the Aim Higher register for the most socially disadvantaged), focusing in the main on the programme of study. This exploratory work is longitudinal with the researcher entering the Roman Catholic High School every two weeks during the academic year (over a period of nine months).