“Going around the long route to get where I want to be”: Exploring the university experiences of care leaver students

Abstract

There is an evident, systemic lack of understanding regarding the university success of care leaver students. The few studies in this area indicate that care leavers tend to be highly independent, motivated, and determined to academically succeed, yet also more likely to face compound disadvantage that can impact their participation and completion. The current study sought to better understand the perceived support needs of care leaver university students, with the goal of improving support offerings for future cohorts of care leavers. Semi-structured interviews with seven female care leavers enrolled at an Australian university between 2018–2022 (at time of interview, M_age = 22, enrolled = 5, withdrawn = 2) explored university experiences, perceptions of available supports, enablers and barriers of course completion, as well as recommendations to support future care leaver cohorts. A reflexive thematic analysis revealed participants were required to navigate a university landscape that did not always account for their needs. They reported utilising new relationships and existing internal resources to overcome the unique challenges they encountered. The tension between feeling unable to self-disclose their care leaver status and yet longing to connect with other care leavers presented as a key finding. The findings demonstrated the various supports higher education institutions could introduce such as social opportunities with other care leavers to empower care leaver students in succeeding at university.