The growing literature on access, participation, and success of refugees entering higher education has illustrated the myriad challenges that this cohort faces. Much of this research has rightly focused on the student perspective, exploring the barriers and challenges that impede entry, engagement, and achievement. Relatedly, there is growing…

This study examines the 50-year history of the Australian New Zealand Student Services Association, the key association in the region. Specific initiatives on how the association has evolved and pivoted over time to meet the needs of its members, the students the members support, and their institutions.

Enrolment statistics indicate that while the cultural and linguistic landscape of Australian higher education continues to be enriched by widening participation and internationalization, ongoing patterns of underrepresentation of students from traditionally excluded, equity groups persist. There is a need for sector-wide, strengths-based…

Much research into how universities seek to support their students' graduate employability has focused on academic strategies such as graduate attributes and work-integrated learning, or the employability benefits of part-time work, volunteering, and extracurricular activities. However, the work of the professional staff who support these…

This empirical article presents student affairs and services practitioners' perceptions regarding the sense of accomplishment they feel in their job. Results show helping students, collaborating among colleagues, contributing positively to a broader community, and the autonomous and engaging nature of the work itself provided SAS staff across…

With the rise of international education in the Asia-Pacific, Chinese students have become a key demographic in Australian universities. However, cultural differences between China and Australia often challenge these students' adaptation. Drawing inspiration from the growing trend in the modern entertainment industry, researchers have explored…

This study investigated the impact of Queensland University of Technology (QUT) student engagement with cocurricular services in 2020. With limited institutional data, it is often not possible to gauge the cumulative impact of all retention and teaching activities, and while any one support activity cannot carry the weight of improving student…

A reflexive thematic analysis was used to identify factors that enhance and inhibit employee engagement amongst professional staff working in shared services teams in an Australian regional university. With efficient and effective client service delivery expected of people working in a shared services structure, employee buy-in and the need for…

In this article, we present a case study of the nature of First Peoples' engagement with the GUMURRII Student Success Unit at Griffith University, Queensland, Australia. Higher education plays a critical role in improving socioeconomic outcomes in First Peoples communities. Recent reports indicate First Peoples are still under-represented at…

Increasing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander participation in higher education can play a critical role in transforming lives and is the trajectory to closing the gap and reducing disadvantage. Despite recent progress, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples remain significantly under-represented in higher education. Poor retention and…

An increasing amount of evidence indicates that mental health conditions pose a significant challenge for post-secondary students on the autism spectrum. A review of the literature was conducted to bring greater awareness to the issue of mental health conditions of university students on the autism spectrum, to identify the impact of mental health…

The benefits of student-staff partnerships are widely reported in the Students-as-Partners literature. It is envisaged that partnership initiatives can have a transformative effect on institutional cultures, however, how this transformation might be achieved is less clear. Building on transdisciplinary and systems change perspectives, we propose a…

Increasing access for underrepresented cohorts to higher education has long been a priority internationally, and Australia is no exception. While universities offer a range of services in the areas of Equity, Career Development and Academic Advising (ECDAA) to support student success, there is little understanding of how these student-facing…

Centralised student support such as academic advising, career guidance, and wellbeing services are important elements of the first-year student experience. While some studies have investigated how use of these services relates to student outcomes, there has been little focus on how they might influence student engagement. The current study…

International students are an important component of the host country and universities bringing economic, social, and community contributions. International students are the most vulnerable students with challenges related to academic expectations, language proficiency, and socio-cultural integration. This study explores the challenges of…