Abstract
PurposeTo uncover age inequalities in participation in higher education (HE) in Spain, the socio-demographic profile of Spanish adult undergraduates is compared to that of the general population of the same age group (25–54). Specific attention is devoted to differentials between face-to-face and distance adult students.Design/methodology/approachThe study is mainly based on a comparative analysis of quantitative data generated by an online survey conducted by the authors among students over the age of 25 enrolled in Spanish public universities. Concurrent secondary sources have been considered as well.FindingsEmployment and family obligations appear as powerful conditioners of adults' access to HE, their choice of study mode (face-to-face or distance) and their area of study. The possession of previous HE qualifications also appears as an important factor differentiating adult undergraduates from the general population.Research limitations/implicationsThe online survey is intended to reveal the main socio-demographic barriers to adult access to HE in Spain, rather than to draw a statistically representative profile of the target universe. The standard methodological recommendations have been followed to control the expected low response rate for the online questionnaire.Practical implicationsThe study points to the need to deeply articulate current university-level compensatory mechanisms with macro-level age-sensitive social policies.Social implicationsLife course policies aimed at reducing age educational inequalities are advanced.Originality/valueThe social conditioners of adult participation in HE are addressed through a conceptual framework combining the life-course perspective with the prevalent research approach, centred on the notions of lifelong learning and non-traditional learners' unequal access.
Highlights
The main objective of the research presented here is to compare the socio-demographic profile of Spanish adult undergraduates with that of the general population of the same age group (25–54), distinguishing between face-to-face and distance students
The objective stems from a concern with equity in relation to the participation of adult students in higher education (HE): Assuming with Arin~o that the reflection of the diversity of the population in the student body is a paramount indicator of equity, “[t]he question to be investigated [. . .] is to what extent the education system -in our case, the university system-reflects the existing inequalities in the social structure” (2014, p. 13 [our translation])
Primary data originate in an online survey conducted by the authors among university undergraduates in the 25–54 age group, whereas concomitant secondary data have been collected from the Centro de Investigaciones Sociologicas (CIS), the reference public centre for sociological research in Spain
Summary
The main objective of the research presented here is to compare the socio-demographic profile of Spanish adult undergraduates with that of the general population of the same age group (25–54), distinguishing between face-to-face and distance students. As can be checked in the successive EUROSTUDENT rounds, including number VII (2018–2021), adult students have been representing high percentages of the student body in diverse countries of the European Higher Education Area (EHEA) for quite a long time but have remained underrepresented in various spheres such as technical and scientific studies (together with women). Their underrepresentation is, unsurprisingly, especially high in face-to-face and full-time conventional studies, and Spain has not been an exception to such trends. As for the face-to-face vs distance learning divide, it has not been addressed in the Spanish case in relation to adult students
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