University student equity cohorts experience inequitable graduate/employment outcomes. These challenges are magnified for Culturally and Linguistically Marginalised Migrant and/or Refugee students (CALMMR). Consequently, this study aimed to investigate the views of Australian university educators on the transitioning of CALMMR students from higher…

For efficient and effective learning, intensive-mode programs have increasingly focused on threshold concepts -- transformative, often-troublesome, moments in learning that represent the development of key knowledge. Threshold concept theory has support in the context of content-based, disciplinary domains, but questions remain about its…

This practice report, framed within transition pedagogy (Kift et al., 2010), seeks to offer suggestions to assist higher education educators and administrators to develop and apply policies to foster student belonging. The authors of this article are employed at an Australian university which offers alternative pathways for students to enter a…

This case study assesses how an Australian University used an online tool (WeChat) to support commencing online Chinese articulation students transition in their studies in response to COVID-19 border restrictions. It investigates how effectively the engagement initiatives met the students' needs and identify areas of improvement. The usage of an…

Improving the academic and social outcomes of boys -- specifically boys from low-SES backgrounds -- remains of international importance. With this in mind, research continues to document the ways in which relational learning is integral for the well-being of students, specifically those students in disadvantaged school contexts. This paper focuses…

A growing number of single mothers are seeking entry to higher education via enabling programs; however, these students face unique struggles to make their dream a reality. There is some research on the challenges faced by student-mothers in higher education; however, research specifically on single mothers in enabling education is limited. This…

The U@Uni Academy provides a case study of a composite preparation and access programme, integrating key elements of widening participation, alternate entry and enabling schemes. It is offered to students from a low socioeconomic background and focuses on non-traditional indicators of attainment in order to prepare for, access and successfully…

For most young people, social capital plays an important role in transitioning to postsecondary education and employment. For youth who are deaf or hard of hearing (DHH), social capital can mitigate negative effects of challenges they will likely encounter after high school. In phase 2 of a two-phase qualitative study in Australia, we investigated…

Critical thinking is a core skill within tertiary education, traditionally relying on such principles as logic and truth. Relativistic pedagogical frameworks, such as critical literacy, however, have become increasingly widespread within all levels of education and call into question such principles. In order to ascertain whether critical thinking…

The field of research (FoR) that an academic participates in is both a manifestation of, and a contributor to the development of their identity. When an academic changes that FoR the question then arises as to how they reconcile this change with their identity. This paper uses the identity-trajectory framework to analyse the discourse of 19…

Personal characteristics contributing to success in higher education has become an important area of focus in recent years. Duckworth's (2007) grit framework shows positive correlations with a range of academic outcomes. This article explores the characteristics of grit in a study of female students who identified as mothers during their enrolment…

Positive psychology is one of the newest branches of psychology to emerge, and there is a growing research base of scientific study to validate the significance of this psychological approach in people's lives. This research investigates a unit of study that was developed for students entering university through an enabling program in order to…

The benefits of higher education to individuals and to society are acknowledged both in Australia and internationally. Increased access to higher education means that greatly diverse students are beginning their tertiary learning journey. We investigate the experiences of a group of non-traditional students undertaking a tertiary preparation…

Student transition into higher education has increased in importance in recent times, with the growing trend in Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development nations towards universal higher education provision and the concomitant widening of participation to include previously under-represented groups. However, "transition" as a…

The School to University Pathways for Refugee Students (SUPRS) project was a two-year case study conducted with seven schools and three universities across urban and regional Australia that investigated the enablers and constraints faced by refugee background students transitioning from high school to university. Focus groups and interviews with…