Not there yet: An Investigation into the Access and Participation of Students from Humanitarian Refugee Backgrounds in the Australian Higher Education System

Dr Les Terry, Dr Ryan Naylor, Dr Nga Nguyen NOT THERE YET An Investigation into the Access and Participation of Students from Humanitarian Refugee Backgrounds in the Australian Higher Education System and Dr Alberto Rizzo Melbourne Refugee Studies Program Terry, Naylor, Nguyen and Rizzo | 2 Not There Yet An Investigation into the Access and Participation of Students from Humanitarian Refugee Backgrounds in the Australian Higher Education System Acknowledgements The researchers would like to acknowledge the support of the National Centre for Student Equity in Higher Education (NCSEHE) at Curtin University in funding this project. The project team would also like to thank Xavier Goldie from The University of Melbourne for his expertise in analysis of Census data. Not There Yet An Investigation into the Access and Participation of Students from Humanitarian Refugee Backgrounds in the Australian Higher Education System Terry, Naylor, Nguyen and Rizzo | 3 Contents Introduction ....................................................................................................................................... 5 1.Project Aims ............................................................................................................................... 7 2.Project Methodology .................................................................................................................. 9 3.Contexts and Challenges ......................................................................................................... 10 3.1Barriers, Needs and Aspirations of Refugee Background Students ................................. 11 3.2Highlighting Agency, Resilience, Autonomy and Community Support ............................. 14 3.3Motivation and Skills ......................................................................................................... 16 4.Summary of Selected Data on Refugee Background Student Participation in Higher Education from 2009 to 2014 ....................................................................................... 19 4.1Enrolment patterns of students from refugee backgrounds .............................................. 26 4.2Geographical distribution of communities of interest ........................................................ 33 5.Concluding Statement and Key Findings ................................................................................. 36 5.1Findings ............................................................................................................................ 37 6.Recommendations ................................................................................................................... 38 7.Reference List .......................................................................................................................... 39 8.Appendix .................................................................................................................................. 42 Not There Yet An Investigation into the Access and Participation of Students from Humanitarian Refugee Backgrounds in the Australian Higher Education System Terry, Naylor, Nguyen and Rizzo | 4 Tables Table 1: Refugee Background Student Numbers by Year (2009-2014) ......................................... 19 Table 2: Total Student Load (EFTSL) of Refugee Background Students Enrolled in Higher Education by Year (2009-2014) ........................................................................ 20 Table 3: Refugee Background Student Numbers by Year and Gender (2009-2014) ..................... 20 Table 4: Total Refugee Background Student Numbers by Gender for Selected Communities in 2014 .................................................................................................................................. 21 Table 5: Refugee Background Student Numbers by Year and Age Group (2009-2014) ................ 21 Table 6: Country of Birth of Refugee Background Students ........................................................... 22 Table 7: Higher Education Participation Ratio of Total Refugee Background Population for Selected Communities in 2014 .................................................................................... 23 Table 8: Languages Spoken at Home by Refugee Background Students ...................................... 23 Table 9: Previous Educational Experience for Commencing Students from Refugee Backgrounds....................................................................................................... 25 Table 10: Level of Course for Students from Refugee Backgrounds .............................................. 26 Table 11: Fields of Study for Students from Refugee Backgrounds ............................................... 27 Table 12: Higher Education Broad Field of Study for selected Refugee Background Communities (2014) ..................................................................... 28 Table 13: Total Number of Refugee Background Students Enrolled in Higher Education by University (2014) ........................................................................................................ 29 Table 14: Total Number of Refugee Background Students Enrolled in Higher Education by State (2014) ................................................................................... 32 Table 15: Total Number of Refugee Background Students Enrolled in Higher Education by Type of Institution (2014)............................................................................................ 32 Figures Figure 1: Year of Arrival in Australia of Students from Refugee Backgrounds ............................... 24 Figure 2: Total Number of Refugee Background Students Enrolled in Higher Education by University (2009 to 2014) ............................................................... 31 Figure 3: Geographical Distributions of Selected Overseas-Born Communities in Melbourne and Sydney ............................................................................................... 33 Figure 4: Geographical Distributions of Selected Overseas-Born Communities in Adelaide and Hobart.................................................................................................... 34 Figure 5: Geographical Distributions of Afghani-born and Burmese-born Communities in Melbourne ................................................................................................................... 35 Not There Yet An Investigation into the Access and Participation of Students from Humanitarian Refugee Backgrounds in the Australian Higher Education System Terry, Naylor, Nguyen and Rizzo | 5 Introduction As a signatory to the United Nations 1951 International Convention on Refugees, Australia continues to accept significant numbers of humanitarian refugees on an annual basis. Recent global developments in terms of conflict in many countries have exacerbated the issue of ‘forced migration’, with estimates indicating that up to sixty million displaced people are seeking refuge and protection for a variety of reasons at this present time. Having experienced considerable displacement in seeking refuge, including substantial disruption of their education, many of those individuals entering Australia will encounter barriers to their access and participation in the higher education system. However, recent researches have highlighted the fact that many of these Humanitarian Program entrants arrive as highly skilled and well-educated persons. While academic preparation is an important factor in success at university level, non-academic factors that refugee background students may possess, such as ‘grit’ or determination, have been shown in several studies (Duckworth, Peterson, Matthews, & Kelly, 2007; Strayhorn, 2014) to improve the chances of success, as well as substantially enriching university communities. Consequently, it is apparent from this research on the issue of participation of refugee background students in Australian universities, that a strengths-based approach provides the best framework for further ‘engagement’ with these individuals and their communities. Specifically, this report reviews the literature and analyses enrolment data from the Department of Education and Training and also refers to Census data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), with a view to contributing to discussions about the future directions in policy and action, including the development of targeted outreach and engagement programs for refugee background students. While the Australian Government’s formal equity categories for higher education subsume refugee background students within the broad category of ‘Non-English Speaking Background (NESB)’, refugee communities face a range of obstacles that relate to specific refugee experience, such as trauma, forced migration, loss of family, disrupted schooling, that compound the barriers that they face in their transition into Australian society. It is also clear from a study of the enrolment data collected by the Commonwealth Department of Education and Training that refugee background students form a small but increasing proportion of the Australian higher education sector. Many come from an English as an additional language (EAL) background and are overwhelmingly located in low socioeconomic (SES) areas. It should also be noted that the experiences of these communities cannot be easily subsumed under the term ‘refugee’ which bundles all communities and individuals into a monolithic group, and while it is the case that there are common barriers faced by these communities in achieving full participation in the higher education system in Australia, it is also apparent that the diverse communities are often positioned differently in regard to their relationship with the university sector. Even though the higher education sector, and particularly the public universities, appear to be committed to widening participation and ensuring that all students, in this case refugee background entrants, have a positive education experience, it is the view of the authors of this study that existing university ‘engagement’ programs and strategies could be strengthened through a more focused, community-based rights and capacity building approach. Not only will this more targeted set of programs have the benefits of fostering links between universities and specific communities that are not well represented in the enrolment intakes across the higher education sector. Moreover, such an approach to engagement could form the basis for solid and innovative research partnerships. The research also highlights the fact that selected universities, as shown below, have been highly active in creating pathways and reforming their curricula to be inclusive of refugee background students, including the provision of highly targeted English Language and mentoring support, as Not There Yet An Investigation into the Access and Participation of Students from Humanitarian Refugee Backgrounds in the Australian Higher Education System Terry, Naylor, Nguyen and Rizzo | 6 well as cultural awareness training for all staff. In addition, it is the view of the researchers involved in this study that the work of this small group of universities, which needs to be encouraged and supported further, provides model strategies and approaches that could also be adopted by other universities in which students from refugee backgrounds are still clearly underrepresented. Even though the research focus was confined to entrants of the Australian Humanitarian and Refugee Program a key issue that emerged as the study progressed, was the situation of asylum seekers who held temporary humanitarian visas with varying conditions attached. It was clear that there are serious issues facing many of these individuals even when permission has been granted for study in Australia. Despite the positive efforts of a number of university administrations to support these students through such initiatives as, for example, short-term humanitarian scholarships, this highly vulnerable group of potential students are not able to advance their education in any formal way at the higher education level, except under the inappropriate and costly ‘International student’ category. It is therefore proposed as an additional recommendation that the Commonwealth Government urgently investigate the asylum seeker situation in terms of the barriers to access to study at the tertiary level, with a view to addressing the concerns that have been consistently raised by many key community and academic sources. Not There Yet An Investigation into the Access and Participation of Students from Humanitarian Refugee Backgrounds in the Australian Higher Education System Terry, Naylor, Nguyen and Rizzo | 7 1. Project Aims As stated above, this research reviews selected literature and data relating to the participation of students from refugee backgrounds in Australian higher education. While acknowledging the numerous high quality case studies that have been identified through this investigation that provide ground level snapshots on the experiences of ‘refugee students’, it is apparent that there was a dearth of ‘bigger picture’ research at a system’s level in relation to the situation of these students regarding their participation in higher education. There are substantial data held by the Commonwealth Department of Education and Training which relates to the participation of refugee background students across the nation, and their enrolment patterns at particular sites, but it is clear from a survey of the literature that to date this data had not been adequately explored, even though it provides a rich source of information that can complement existing efforts of universities in developing policies and programs for the increasing number of refugee background students entering Australian universities. However, working within a ‘strengths-based’ approach, it is clear from the research that students from refugee background form a small but increasing proportion of the Australian higher education system who bring with them a wealth of personal skills and knowledge and who, if given the opportunity, can contribute to, as well as benefit from, the further development of a high quality socially inclusive university system. With this context in mind, the intended purposes of this research are to:  review the literature in order to identify key principles and practices for engaging and supporting refugee background communities with their access to and participation in the university system;  address the lack of information on the levels of participation of people of refugee background in Australian higher education;  provide an overview of the participation of the diverse refugee background communities across the Australian higher education system;  identify patterns of under-representation across the university system, courses and communities;  encourage all Australian universities to develop better targeted and designed engagement programs for the diverse refugee background communities;  provide a research base for the development of comprehensive national and international responses to the issues of the participation of refugee background students in higher education. While this study is intended to encourage discussion of issues to do with refugee background students in the national system of higher education, it is hoped that the research will provide an opportunity for the sector to reflect on the current patterns of participation of these students and encourage policy makers and practitioners to build on the very positive work that is going on across universities, particularly that which has been undertaken at particular sites where significant numbers of refugee background students have enrolled in the period under study. This inquiry is also presented as a first step in a larger research program that will identify more closely the educational aspirations and experiences of underrepresented communities in the higher education sector, as the basis for community and culturally specific ‘engagement’ initiatives. These findings and proposals for action may also be of interest to equity programs that ‘target’ other groups that share characteristics with students from refugee backgrounds, including first in family, low SES, mature aged students, and culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) groups of students, though as we have pointed out the students that are the focus for this research have Not There Yet An Investigation into the Access and Participation of Students from Humanitarian Refugee Backgrounds in the Australian Higher Education System Terry, Naylor, Nguyen and Rizzo | 8 specific needs that arise from particular histories that cannot be easily subsumed into other equity groups, but may at certain points overlap. Not There Yet An Investigation into the Access and Participation of Students from Humanitarian Refugee Backgrounds in the Australian Higher Education System Terry, Naylor, Nguyen and Rizzo | 9 2. Project Methodology In composing this report, the research team performed an extensive survey of selected rich literature produced from both Australian and international studies, with a view to identifying major themes, issues and strategies for engaging with refugee background communities at the tertiary education level. The general focus of the studies showed that much of the research (including action research) has proceeded beyond the ‘discourses of vulnerability’ to a position where students and communities from refugee backgrounds are rightfully regarded as highly active participants in expressing and acting on their educational aspirations. Previously unexamined data on refugee background student participation in higher education was also obtained in de-identified form from the Commonwealth Department of Education and Training. Only those students identifying themselves as having a permanent humanitarian visa in their citizen/resident indicator data (element 358 in the HEIMS database) were included in the sample. Data for groups of people that were small enough to potentially identify individuals were provided in generalised form (e.g. "<5"). Simple data analysis of the records was then performed to identify key aspects of these students’ participation and background. In addition, refugee population data on four countries (Iraq, Afghanistan, Myanmar and Bhutan) were obtained from the Department of Immigration and Border Protection, Humanitarian Program, for 2008 to 2014. The number of humanitarian visas awarded in this period was used as an estimation of refugee populations from these countries. Social geography was performed using ABS census data. People who reported being born in specific countries of interest (Afghanistan, Bhutan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Iraq, Myanmar (Burma), South Sudan and Sudan) and had arrived in Australia between Census Day 2006 and Census Day 2011 (i.e. during the last census period) were identified. These dates were chosen because they were the most recent census figures available, and also because approximately 78% of people of refugee background participating in higher education reported arriving in Australia during this period (see Chapter 3). Data were obtained from the ABS Table Builder, using the “2011 Census – Counting Individuals, Place of Usual Residence” data cube. Countries of interest were based on those identified as being the country of birth for a large proportion of refugee background students (see Chapter 3). Those countries that have experienced emigration due to factors other than humanitarian reasons (for example, Iran, Zimbabwe, Sri Lanka and China) were discounted, while still recognising that sub-groups in these populations have entered Australia as humanitarian refugees. Consequently, the recommendations should be viewed as relevant to individuals and sub-groups of these communities. However, it should also be noted that the geographic distributions, even if predominately referring to communities with high proportions of individuals from refugee background, include all those from that community, not just those on humanitarian visas. This is a limitation of the census data collection, although the research team are of the view that the influence of this on the findings for the countries chosen was minimal. Further discussion is provided below. Counts were obtained at Statistical Area Level 2 (SA2), which is approximately consistent with gazetted suburbs in most metropolitan regions in Australia. Counts were converted to proportions of the national total for each community of birth, and the proportions mapped across each Greater City Statistical Area. Not There Yet An Investigation into the Access and Participation of Students from Humanitarian Refugee Backgrounds in the Australian Higher Education System Terry, Naylor, Nguyen and Rizzo | 16 education institutions play a role as key sites in resettlement that contribute to the formation of ‘new race’ and gender identities in ways that can challenge accepted cultural and gender ‘knowledges’ and relationships. A common thread in the cases presented by these researchers is the view that the lived experiences of refugee background students in higher education attest to their capacities and skills of adaptation, resilience, aptitude and a willingness to look forward. However, a number of these studies highlight the fact that the experiences of females from refugee backgrounds are not the same as those of their male counterparts in their community (see for example Seck 2015). For many of the females in the studies, developing public personae and professional networks was complicated by gender roles. It was suggested by some researches that educational and other success often came at a cost to their cultural identity, distancing them from some aspects of traditional community and cultural roles. In their study, for example, Harris, Marlowe and Nyon (2015) also point to the need to recognise ‘multiple forms of knowledge’ as enriched by previous experiences and life perspectives. These researchers argue that such ‘bridged’ and multiple knowledges are the ‘nexus of new ways of knowing in host cultures and sites of resettlement’. They suggest a more culturally sensitive and multifaceted approach that takes into account the complexity of women’s lives in diverse cultural contexts. Eades (2013, p.4) also, while not commenting specifically on education matters, argues for a rather more robust view of the ‘refugee experience’ and perspective and one that takes into account the strengths of ‘individuals, families and communities in relation to their capacities, talents, competencies, possibilities, visions, values and hopes; rather than through their deficiencies, pathologies or disorders’. 3.3 Motivation and Skills Hatoss, O’Neill and Eacersall (2012) investigated the linguistic and educational ‘socialisation’ of Sudanese refugee background students in Australia and found that while they had a great deal of motivation and agency in their career choices, there were evident tensions between their high levels of educational aspiration and the linguistic, psychological, racial and social barriers that they encountered. Similarly, in her small-scale study Hirano (2014) also discussed the issue of motivation and outcomes for refugee background students but focussed specifically on the acquisition of writing and reading skills. Her research involved seven ‘not college-ready’ students at Hope College, a small private liberal arts college in the Southeast of the United States. She posits the view that an explicit focus on literacy skills development with first-year college refugee background students and a supportive learning environment with structures such as a summer bridging programs, literacy-rich contexts, orientation programs and other innovations, can lead to very positive results in the participation of these groups of students. Hirano (2014 p.48) states that, ‘what distinguishes this population of students is not so much the type of challenges they face with academic literacy in college as much as the motivation they have to access resources…’. This latter researcher also found that all of the participants made use of the different resources available, but the resources they chose to use, the amount of support they required, and the steps in the writing process they needed, varied enormously between them. Continuing, Hirano argues that providing specific support measures, such as a tutor to help with reading and writing, a writing centre, and supportive and attentive professors worked well. Hirano concludes by arguing ‘that within a highly supportive environment, refugee background students who graduate from high school without reaching the standard college admissions literacy level are still able to cope with tertiary academic reading and writing’. For this researcher, ‘It is possible that interrupted education may be a more salient feature to distinguish a group of students with educational needs than the refugee experience as whole…’ (p.49). Not There Yet An Investigation into the Access and Participation of Students from Humanitarian Refugee Backgrounds in the Australian Higher Education System Terry, Naylor, Nguyen and Rizzo | 17 The selected projects and studies indicate that much research has been carried out to identify the barriers and needs of some refugee communities in accessing higher education. However, the vast majority of these projects have been small-scale or focused on specific institutions. While they have provided an excellent base for further research and community engagement, they have been primarily qualitative in orientation and strategies identified for improving the participation of the identified groups tend to remain at the general level of response to ‘refugees’ as if a homogenous category. However, as stated, the general findings from these case studies point out that refugee background students have ‘complex and multifaceted’ needs that often require forms of support that targets their particular situation, while recognising the knowledge and attributes that the diverse groups of students bring with them to their studies at all levels of the education system. In this context, this thumbnail sketch of the selected literature has highlighted a range of different and innovative strategies that were developed for the inclusion of refugee background students at the tertiary education level, ranging from curriculum change, literacy support, professional development of staff for engaging with diversity, as well as more focussed internationalisation of the curriculum. In addition, the issue of the lack of participation of women and the obstacles they encountered in balancing cultural and institutional demands was also highlighted, as was the point that university-community partnerships, specifically those involving the wider social/civic community have an integral part to play at key points in the progression of the student through their higher education studies. In concluding, it is possible to argue that the general pattern emanating from the surveyed research is the view that, ‘Despite multiple difficulties in commencing and completing tertiary education, the dedication and resilience of these students in education is indisputable’. (Earnest et al. 2014, p.172) The review of the literature also points to the apparent need for a more comprehensive analysis of the situation across the entire tertiary sector in Australia. The levels and patterns of participation of people of refugee background need to be established across the national system of higher education. The spread of students across institutions, course types, and the different levels of participation and retention in terms of location, gender and specific community, need to be established in order to detail what is happening with these individuals and groups at a systemic as well as local level. While on-campus support for refugee background students, such as programs of language support, study skills development and cross-cultural activities, are currently offered at many universities, access to the pathways into a broad range of offerings have not been fully explored in many of the universities in any specific sense. There also appears to be major gaps in the higher education sector in terms of the policy and programs for building comprehensive, culturally sensitive and well targeted forms of ‘engagement’ that foster community capacity for a meaningful interaction with universities. In this context this study adds to the existing body of literature in this domain through a study of quantitative data pertaining to the overall situation in higher education of those persons who have identified themselves as being a ‘humanitarian refugee’ at the time of their enrolment. Such an inquiry does not in any way discount the insights and findings of the local level and specific institutional studies discussed above. However, the current study, as recommended by Shakya et al. (2010, p. 75) in their U.K. based research, has as its focus the challenge of utilising data collected by all institutions that will enable a demonstration of positive equity outcomes, or highlight areas of concern, to ‘deliver early and timely’ services for ‘refugees’. However, as stated at the outset, and also confirmed by the discussion above, it is intended that the analysis and reflection of the data will provide a basis for a comprehensive set of two-way ‘conversations’ that have the goal of fostering autonomous and active education networks across those communities Not There Yet An Investigation into the Access and Participation of Students from Humanitarian Refugee Backgrounds in the Australian Higher Education System Terry, Naylor, Nguyen and Rizzo | 18 that have primarily formed in recent years as result of seeking protection and resettlement in Australia. Not There Yet An Investigation into the Access and Participation of Students from Humanitarian Refugee Backgrounds in the Australian Higher Education System Terry, Naylor, Nguyen and Rizzo | 19 4. Summary of Selected Data on Refugee Background Student Participation in Higher Education from 2009 to 2014 Data for the following analysis were obtained from the Department of Education and Training’s higher education statistics Group (see the Project Methodology section above). Unfortunately, data collection for students from refugee backgrounds has not been subject to rigorous scrutiny, and many records were found to be missing data or containing potentially incorrect data (for example, by listing country of birth as “Australia”). Privacy concerns regarding identifying individuals also prevented us from distinguishing commencing and continuing students for several analyses. Readers should therefore be cautious when comparing year on year change in the following section, as this may involve double counting some continuing students. Currently, there are 3,506 students from refugee backgrounds enrolled in Australian higher education providers (HEPs) (Table 1). Although these figures represent a relatively small proportion of the total cohort, growth in the number of students from refugee backgrounds has more than doubled during this 6-year period, but is not evenly distributed across communities or discipline areas and is coming off a very low base. The largest growth, of 23.24% from the previous year, was seen in 2011, when the growth rate was 2.4% across the sector as a whole, and 3.6% for domestic students alone. This suggests that, while students from refugee backgrounds comprise only a small proportion of the sector at the moment, given current global movements of ‘forced migrants’, it is the case that these numbers will substantially rise in the coming years (particularly given recent commitments to increase the intake of refugees from Syria), but only if there is a set of highly attuned policy and program strategies to support the integration of these students into higher education. The data also shows that the effective full-time student load for students from refugee backgrounds is 73.7% of the total number of this cohort. Since 2009, this ratio has declined from 75.7% to 72.2% in 2014 (with an average of 75.5% across the period of study, compared to 70% for the broader cohort). This indicates that, despite the increase in overall numbers of students from refugee backgrounds, a significant proportion is undertaking part-time study (although still at lower rates than is common for the sector as a whole). Table 1: Refugee Background Student Numbers by Year (2009-2014) Year Number of Refugeebackground students % change on last year % total domestic student numbers % growth in domestic student numbers 2009 1,687 — 0.21 — 2010 1,897 12.5 0.22 5.3 2011 2,338 23.24 0.26 3.6 2012 2,864 22.49 0.30 5.1 2013 3,271 14.22 0.33 5.5 2014 3,506 7.18 0.34 4.1 Not There Yet An Investigation into the Access and Participation of Students from Humanitarian Refugee Backgrounds in the Australian Higher Education System Terry, Naylor, Nguyen and Rizzo | 20 Table 2: Total Student Load (EFTSL) of Refugee Background Students Enrolled in Higher Education by Year (2009-2014) Year Total EFTSL % change on last year % total student load % change on last year of total student load 2009 1,276.8 — 0.2 — 2010 1,428.9 11.9 0.2 6.0 2011 1,729.8 21.0 0.2 3.1 2012 2,111.2 22.1 0.2 5.1 2013 2,392.4 13.3 0.3 5.1 2014 2,532.5 5.9 0.3 3.8 In reviewing the data it was apparent that the cohort of students from refugee backgrounds shows some demographic differences from ‘mainstream’ students. Females have composed approximately 55% of total student numbers since 2009. Among students from refugee backgrounds, however, the balance is skewed more towards males, who comprise between 60 and 70 per cent of these students (Table 3). The numbers of females from refugee backgrounds has grown from 30.0% to 40.25% during the 6 years since 2009 but is still substantially lower than their counterparts in the broader population. However, participation rates are dramatically different for males and females in selected communities (Table 4). Table 3: Refugee Background Student Numbers by Year and Gender (2009-2014) Gender 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 Female 507 (30.05%) 608 (32.05%) 802 (34.30%) 1,055 (36.84%) 1,266 (38.72%) 1,411 (40.25%) Male 1,180 (69.95%) 1,289 (67.95%) 1,536 (65.70%) 1,809 (63.16%) 2,004 (61.28%) 2,095 (59.75%) Not There Yet An Investigation into the Access and Participation of Students from Humanitarian Refugee Backgrounds in the Australian Higher Education System Terry, Naylor, Nguyen and Rizzo | 21 Table 4: Total Refugee Background Student Numbers by Gender for Selected Communities in 2014 Country of Birth Female Male Total % Female students Afghanistan 84 214 298 28.2 Bhutan 27 93 120 22.5 Burma (Myanmar) 69 75 144 47.9 Iran 251 252 503 49.9 Iraq 176 167 343 51.3 Sudan 66 216 282 23.4 Two-thirds of Australian university students are below 26 years in age, with nearly a quarter aged 19 years or younger. In contrast, students from refugee backgrounds are more likely to be older (Table 5). Only 12% are younger than 20; nearly half are 26 or older. These proportions remain quite stable across the five years being examined. These findings are important, as they indicate that the majority of students from refugee backgrounds are mature aged students, and may encounter difficulties in their studies, are less likely to complete their studies, and require more support, as shown in a number of researches (Baik, Naylor, & Arkoudis, 2015; Naylor, Baik, & James, 2013; Ramsay, Jones, & Barker, 2007; Tones, Fraser, Elder, & White, 2009). As noted above in discussing the relatively large proportions of refugee background students studying part time, these difficulties may be compounded for students from refugee backgrounds, many of who will be grappling with cultural and linguistic barriers that arise in and beyond the settlement process. Table 5: Refugee Background Student Numbers by Year and Age Group (2009-2014) Age-group 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 % refugees (2014) % total students (2014) 19 Years or under 156 164 214 313 408 434 12.4 23.7 20-25 739 807 944 1,153 1,291 1,361 38.8 43.3 26-30 352 421 552 668 726 817 23.3 10.3 30 above 440 505 628 730 845 894 25.4 22.6 Most (82%) students from refugee backgrounds were born in one of 20 countries (Table 6), with Sudan as the most commonly listed country of birth. It should be noted that a significant minority have their country of birth recorded as ‘Australia’ in the Department of Education’s database. Not There Yet An Investigation into the Access and Participation of Students from Humanitarian Refugee Backgrounds in the Australian Higher Education System Terry, Naylor, Nguyen and Rizzo | 22 Table 6: Country of Birth of Refugee Background Students Country of Birth Total number % 1 Sudan 1,301 13.36 2 Iran 987 10.14 3 Iraq 857 8.80 4 Zimbabwe 627 6.44 5 Afghanistan 599 6.15 6 Sri Lanka 493 5.06 7 Burma (Myanmar) 358 3.68 8 China (excludes SARs and Taiwan Province) 331 3.40 9 Congo, Democratic Republic of 316 3.25 10 Pakistan 291 2.99 11 Sierra Leone 284 2.92 12 Bhutan 256 2.63 13 Ethiopia 224 2.30 14 Liberia 183 1.88 15 Australia 154 1.58 16 Burundi 136 1.40 17 Egypt 123 1.26 18 Rwanda 108 1.11 19 Congo 100 1.03 20 Somalia 93 0.96 In general, the higher education participation ratio for refugee background communities appears to be approximately 2-3% (based on total numbers of humanitarian visas awarded for each country of origin), which it is acknowledged shows a significant under-representation of refugee background students’, even compared to other formal and informal higher education equity groups, although the rate of participation varies marginally across refugee background communities (Table 7). Not There Yet An Investigation into the Access and Participation of Students from Humanitarian Refugee Backgrounds in the Australian Higher Education System Terry, Naylor, Nguyen and Rizzo | 23 Table 7: Higher Education Participation Ratio of Total Refugee Background Population for Selected Communities in 2014 Refugee Population (2014) HE participation ratio 2014 (%) Iraq 14,600 2.29 Afghanistan 8,713 3.39 Myanmar 11,821 1.08 Bhutan 4,981 2.41 The majority (75.7%) of refugee background students are from non-English speaking backgrounds (Table 8). Arabic is reported as being the most commonly spoken language at home for refugees (13.1%), followed by African languages and Persian. English is spoken at home by 24.3% of students from refugee backgrounds. No language information was provided in 3.3% of records. Table 8: Languages Spoken at Home by Refugee Background Students Language spoken at home other than English Total Number % 1 Arabic 1,280 13.1 2 Persian (excluding Dari) 595 6.1 3 African Languages (not further defined) 548 5.6 4 Persian 371 3.8 5 Tamil 350 3.6 6 Nepali 300 3.1 7 Shona 290 3.0 8 French 268 2.8 9 Swahili 268 2.8 10 Burmese 242 2.5 Other languages 2,536 26.0 English 2,370 24.3 No Information 319 3.3 In terms of arrival in Australia nearly 78% of students from refugee backgrounds reported that they entered Australia between 2006 to 2009 (Figure 1). The vast majority arrived after the year 2000, although several students reported years of entry far earlier than this, which may indicate a significant engagement with lifelong learning after a long period of living in Australia. Not There Yet An Investigation into the Access and Participation of Students from Humanitarian Refugee Backgrounds in the Australian Higher Education System Terry, Naylor, Nguyen and Rizzo | 24 Figure 1: Year of Arrival in Australia of Students from Refugee Backgrounds Taken together these data suggest that many students from refugee backgrounds are relatively new arrivals with an extended peak evident in 2008 – 2009 . The majority of these students would be formally recorded as members of the non-English speaking background equity group, and possibly as low SES students or regional students. However, it should be remembered that many of them would have been in Australia for at least several years before entering higher education. As the data in Table 9 below shows, selected groups of students from refugee backgrounds have at least had some experience with the Australian education system before applying for university. A quarter of commencing refugee background students report their highest previous level of education as completing secondary school, while another quarter report having finished a higher education course of some type (Table 9). Approximately 10% obtained university entry on the basis of having completed a VET award course or an incomplete higher education course. 0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400 1600 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 Number of Students Year of Arrival in Australia Not There Yet An Investigation into the Access and Participation of Students from Humanitarian Refugee Backgrounds in the Australian Higher Education System Terry, Naylor, Nguyen and Rizzo | 25 Table 9: Previous Educational Experience for Commencing Students from Refugee Backgrounds Academic Year Highest educational participation prior to commencement 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 A complete final year of secondary education at school or Registered Training Organisation 441 451 282 357 419 420 A complete higher education bachelor level course 193 264 200 184 235 239 A complete higher education postgraduate level course 46 68 69 73 70 96 A complete higher education sub-degree level course 93 115 76 89 124 99 A complete VET award course 142 189 141 215 207 187 An incomplete higher education course 176 218 130 141 144 130 An incomplete VET award course 31 44 27 54 29 45 No prior educational attainment 125 118 99 110 116 142 Other qualification, complete or incomplete 102 133 73 122 111 121 Overseas student 93 90 106 120 150 139 TAFE course 60 29 Not There Yet An Investigation into the Access and Participation of Students from Humanitarian Refugee Backgrounds in the Australian Higher Education System Terry, Naylor, Nguyen and Rizzo | 32 Table 14: Total Number of Refugee Background Students Enrolled in Higher Education by State (2014) State % Total Refugee Numbers % Total Refugee EFTSL % Total Student Numbers New South Wales 27.0 26.9 29.8 Victoria 25.4 24.6 27.1 Queensland 16.9 17.3 17.7 Western Australia 10.0 9.5 10.1 South Australia 12.4 13.3 6.6 Tasmania 2.4 2.7 2.3 Northern Territory 0.9 0.5 0.9 Australian Capital Territory 3.0 2.8 3.1 Multi-State 2.0 2.2 2.3 Although the highest numbers of refugee students are enrolled in New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland, South Australia and Tasmania have a disproportionately high number of students from refugee backgrounds compared to their share of students generally, and a slightly higher share of EFTSL (Table 14). A review of these data shows that students from refugee backgrounds are under-represented at the Group of Eight and Regional Universities Network (RUN) institutions, by comparison with the proportion of total student numbers at these institutions (Table 15). In the case of regional universities, this may be due to the lower proportion of refugees living in those areas. In contrast, refugee background students are relatively over-represented at the Innovative Research Universities (IRU) and unaligned universities. Table 15: Total Number of Refugee Background Students Enrolled in Higher Education by Type of Institution (2014) University Group % Total Refugee Numbers % Total Student Numbers 2014 Group of Eight 14.2 28.0 ATN 22.1 18.0 IRU 18.26 15.7 RUN 6.5 8.5 Unaligned 38.9 29.8 Not There Yet An Investigation into the Access and Participation of Students from Humanitarian Refugee Backgrounds in the Australian Higher Education System Terry, Naylor, Nguyen and Rizzo | 33 4.2 Geographical distribution of communities of interest In this final section of this report, particular communities of interest and their geographic distributions around major Australian cities are reviewed using ABS census data from the most recent census in 2011. This section does not intend to provide a comprehensive survey of refugee community distributions across Australia. Instead, we wish to demonstrate using selected examples that refugees do not form a monolithic group, and that the distributions of individual communities require tailored approaches to outreach, and may present students with different challenges in terms of transport, community support and so on. These communities were identified because of the relatively high levels of participation of individuals from refugee background in higher education (Table 6, 7 above). Those countries that have had a large amount of emigration due to factors other than humanitarian reasons (e.g. Iran, Zimbabwe, Sri Lanka and China) were discounted, leaving eight countries of interest: Afghanistan, Bhutan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Iraq, Myanmar (Burma), South Sudan and Sudan. Full details are provided in Chapter 1. Although these countries of birth were selected because these were the places that students from refugee background had listed on their university applications (information which is not collected as part of ABS census data), it should be noted that the geographic distributions include all those reporting that country of birth, not just those on humanitarian visas. However, an examination of this material was deemed necessary for the purpose of identifying particular locations where opportunities exist for universities to focus outreach programs, and better engage with the selected new and emerging communities. Similarly, these selected communities were identified as a model for analysis that could be applied to all the communities that have a link with Australia’s Refugee and Humanitarian Program. Figure 3: Geographical Distributions of Selected Overseas-Born Communities in Melbourne and Sydney Melbourne, Victoria (left) and Sydney, New South Wales (right) Not There Yet An Investigation into the Access and Participation of Students from Humanitarian Refugee Backgrounds in the Australian Higher Education System Terry, Naylor, Nguyen and Rizzo | 34 Population density for the communities of interest are shown in Figure 3 (as a proportion of the national total entering Australia between 2006 and 2011, from ABS data). Afghani, Bhutanese, Burmese, D.R. Congolese, Ethiopian, Iraqi, South Sudanese and Sudanese-born communities are shown here in total. It should be noted that these are typically low SES areas, often underserved by infrastructure, such as inadequate public transport and under-resourced schools. However, the degree of concentration varies from city to city. In Sydney, the density of populations from these communities is focused primarily in Parramatta and the south-west regions, with lower densities forming three radiating areas. In Melbourne, however, these communities are far more dispersed, with particular densities found around Dandenong, Broadmeadows, Werribee, and the inner west. Also of interest is the fact that areas of high population density from these communities are frequently found alongside areas with no recorded members of these communities, thereby raising questions about the ways in which universities might ‘engage’ with these groups. More specifically, members of the communities of interest to this research are not distributed evenly across the cities. This is the case for the majority of the communities that are the focus for equity practitioners. There is considerable evidence that nuanced, community-sensitive approaches to outreach are most effective ‘engagement’ strategies. (Naylor, Baik and James 2011; Bennett et al. 2015). These findings may also underline the impact that South Australian and Tasmanian institutions have had in encouraging participation from students from refugee backgrounds. Although Adelaide and Hobart have relatively few members from these communities of interest, they have aboveaverage proportions of students from refugee backgrounds (see Table 11, 12 above; Figure 4). Figure 4: Geographical Distributions of Selected Overseas-Born Communities in Adelaide and Hobart Adelaide, South Australia (left) and Hobart, Tasmania (right) As a further example, Figure 5 demonstrates the different distributions of two of these communities within Melbourne. As shown, there is very little overlap between the distribution of people born in Afghanistan and in Burma (Myanmar). Although there may be some commonalities of experience for students from these backgrounds, there are likely to be significant differences in the issues, Not There Yet An Investigation into the Access and Participation of Students from Humanitarian Refugee Backgrounds in the Australian Higher Education System Terry, Naylor, Nguyen and Rizzo | 35 structure of networks, or history which should be accounted for in building their interactions with universities (or, indeed, wider community and institutions). It is not enough to assume a ‘one size fits all’ approach. Figure 5: Geographical Distributions of Afghani-born and Burmese-born Communities in Melbourne Afghani-born Communities (left), Burmese-born Communities (right) More broadly, the Australian higher education sector now has the ability to identify and engage communities through targeted and culturally-sensitive ways. It should not be enough to identify students as ‘NESB’ and assume that those students all have similar needs (Naylor, Coates and Kelly 2016). Some institutions are already demonstrating this need for change, by focusing on specific communities such as Pasifika or particular refugee communities (for example, Western Sydney University’s PATHE program). Data-based methodologies such as those shown here can inform university approaches to ensure that services are delivered to those most likely to need them, and to allow outreach programs to be specific, community-led, and culturally engaged. Not There Yet An Investigation into the Access and Participation of Students from Humanitarian Refugee Backgrounds in the Australian Higher Education System Terry, Naylor, Nguyen and Rizzo | 36 5. Concluding Statement and Key Findings A survey of the enrolment data collected by the Commonwealth Department of Education and Training indicated that refugee background students form a small but increasing proportion of the Australian higher education sector. Even though it is apparent that there has been an increase in the number of humanitarian refugees entering Australian universities, it should be noted that this increase is from a low base, and that the general level of participation across communities is still very low. The analysis of the data also indicates that there are only a few selected institutions, primarily in geographic locations close to where the communities settle, that have established refugee background student participation as a key part of their student intake programs. Also, considering course type and participation of the cohort under study, compared to total student population, there are concerns about the lack of refugee background student enrolments in, among others, the education, management and culture, as well as the creative arts fields of study. However, as suggested earlier in this study, while it is the case that there are common barriers faced by these communities in achieving full participation in the higher education system in Australia, the evidence suggests that the diverse communities are also positioned differently in regard to their relationship with the university sector. In general terms, when the figures for university participation are examined for specific communities (for example, Iraq, Afghanistan, Myanmar, Bhutan), it is clear that there is only a small percentage of persons from these communities gaining access to university study. Also, the data indicates that the numbers of females as compared to males enrolling across the system, despite improved participation, is substantially lower within a number of highly vulnerable refugee background communities. A review of the selected literature suggests that there are efforts on the part of selected institutions to develop explicit policies and programs to address barriers and provide pathways to the refugee background communities. Also, a survey of relevant research highlights the fact that a small but significant number of institutions, have put in place a range of pathways as well as reformed curricula to be inclusive of refugee background students. For example, initiatives such as English language support or mentoring programs targeted at or inclusive of refugee background students have been crucial in ensuring better access and participation. As stated earlier in this report, It is the view of the researchers involved in this study that the work of these universities, which needs to be encouraged and supported further, provides model strategies and approaches that could also be adopted by other universities in which students from refugee backgrounds are still clearly underrepresented. However, it is also the view of the authors of this study that existing university ‘engagement’ programs and strategies could be strengthened through a more focused, community-based rights and capacity building approach. Not only will this have the benefits of building links between universities and specific communities that have not been well represented in the enrolment intakes across the higher education sector, but will also set a base for partnership research projects with these groups on issues of mutual interest and benefit. Consequently, there is still much to be done in opening up the system and ensuring that the policies, structures and strategies are put in place to enable increased participation of refugee background students across university and course types. While this will require each university to review policies and programs in terms of the participation of refugee background students, there is also a need for a national set of guidelines and model projects to support universities in their efforts to address the educational needs of refugee background communities. While some positive steps have been taken in this regard, as stated, particularly at sites where there are significant enrolments from these groups, the low rate of participation for each community, the lack of spread of students across different university types, the failure to recognise unmet demand, the absence of any information on the educational aspirations and expectations of refugee background persons, Not There Yet An Investigation into the Access and Participation of Students from Humanitarian Refugee Backgrounds in the Australian Higher Education System Terry, Naylor, Nguyen and Rizzo | 37 as well as the lack of a mechanism for transference of ‘good practice’ across the system, all mean that, in terms of a comprehensive policy and program response to the settlement of humanitarian refugees, the national university system is ‘not there yet’. 5.1 Findings  In 2014, there were 3,506 students from refugee backgrounds in the Australian higher education system. These numbers have more than doubled from 1,687 in 2009.  Refugee background people are not evenly distributed across and between Australia’s capital cities, though in a number of cases the communities can be identified by specific geographic distributions.  Refugee students have complex and multifaceted needs that require an integrated and tailored approach that can specifically support their particular life and education experiences.  The majority of students from refugee background are mature aged (49% are aged over 25) and study on a full-time basis. These factors have previously been shown to add further stressors to study, and students may require additional support.  Nearly 78% percent of students from refugee background arrived in Australia between 2006 and 2009.  Students from refugee background are over-represented in enabling and non-award courses, and under-represented in postgraduate study.  A high proportion of refugee students are enrolled in STEM fields and nursing. This distribution differs from both mainstream students and from other equity groups.  In 2014, approximately 40% of students from refugee background were female, as opposed to approximately 55% across the sector.  Western Sydney University, Griffith University and RMIT University enrol the highest proportions of refugee background students. Institutions in NSW and Victoria enrol the largest proportion of these students overall, while South Australia and Tasmania enrol a higher proportion of those who identified themselves as having been humanitarian entrants into Australia compared to their overall share of students.  Students from refugee backgrounds are under-represented in Group of Eight and Regional Universities Network, and relatively over-represented at the Innovative Research Universities and unaligned universities.  A comparison of male and female participation in higher education across the communities, indicates very low levels of female participation across a number of listed specific communities (Bhutanese 22.5%, Afghan 28.2%, Sudanese 23.4%). In contrast, participation rates for females from Iraq and Iran were 51.3% and 49.9% respectively. However, these figures should be viewed in the context of the already low participation rates across the refugee background communities and the lack of direct engagement with the groups by the university system as a whole. Not There Yet An Investigation into the Access and Participation of Students from Humanitarian Refugee Backgrounds in the Australian Higher Education System Terry, Naylor, Nguyen and Rizzo | 38 6. Recommendations On the basis of the findings from this research it is recommended that in advancing the education of refugee background students as an ‘equity group’ all universities should: review the existing forms of support for students of refugee background to examine how these might be extended and enhanced, including the provision of humanitarian scholarships, outreach programs, well developed foundation studies, as well as communitybased activities shaped by a ‘rights’ model rather than a marketing paradigm; develop more nuanced and culturally specific ways to engage with diverse refugee background communities, including the provision of multilingual materials and communityspecific workshops, seminars and public events that will raise the level of the understanding of university processes, requirements and offerings; identify, as part of key planning processes, the geographical distributions of refugee background communities to inform university engagement activities; acknowledge, as a key principle, the skills, education background, resourcefulness, aspirations and resilience, that students from refugee background bring with them to the learning and research environment; engage actively with specific refugee background communities and individuals, with a view to building knowledge of and skills as ‘agents of change’ in their engagement with the university system; maintain university-community partnerships, specifically those involving the wider social/civic community at the crucial points in the progression of the student through undergraduate studies; establish community and university based group and individual mentoring schemes that recognise and involve the existing expertise across and within refugee background communities. At the national level it is recommended that: there be additional and targeted funding within the Equity Program to support refugee background students at the specific locations in which they are studying; the Commonwealth Department of Education and Training establish a working party from across the sector and relevant key community organisations, to investigate and formulate a National Framework to guide universities in the development of programs, with a view to ensuring improved access and participation, as well as offering specifically targeted engagement for refugee background communities. Further research is required to address the following concerns highlighted by this report: the barriers confronting refugee background women and girls in accessing and participating in Australia’s higher education system; and the educational aspirations of refugee background communities across and within a number of specific refugee background communities, with a view to ensuring better targeted programs for refugee background student in terms of pathways into university programs and courses. Not There Yet An Investigation into the Access and Participation of Students from Humanitarian Refugee Backgrounds in the Australian Higher Education System Terry, Naylor, Nguyen and Rizzo | 39 7. Reference List Baik, C., Naylor, R., & Arkoudis, S. (2015). The first year experience in Australian universities: Finding from two decades, 1994-2014. Melbourne, Centre for the Study of Higher Education. Ben Moshe, D., Bertone, S. & Grossman, M. (2008). 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Brisbane, November 30-December 4 2014. 48 FigureA7.Geographicaldistributionsofselectedoverseas–borncommunitiesinMelbourne. Lefttoright:(Top):Afghani,Bhutanese,Burmese(Myanmar),D.R.Congolese;(bottom):Ethiopian, Iraqi,SouthSudanese,Sudanese.Populationdensityshownasaproportionofthenationaltotal enteringAustraliabetween2006and2011,fromABSdata. 49 FigureA8.Geographicaldistributionsofselectedoverseas–borncommunitiesinPerth. Lefttoright:(Top):Afghani,Bhutanese,Burmese(Myanmar),D.R.Congolese;(bottom):Ethiopian, Iraqi,SouthSudanese,Sudanese.Populationdensityshownasaproportionofthenationaltotal enteringAustraliabetween2006and2011,fromABSdata. FigureA9.Geographicaldistributionsofselectedoverseas–borncommunitiesinSydney. Lefttoright:(Top):Afghani,Bhutanese,Burmese(Myanmar),D.R.Congolese;(bottom):Ethiopian, Iraqi,SouthSudanese,Sudanese.Populationdensityshownasaproportionofthenationaltotal enteringAustraliabetween2006and2011,fromABSdata.