Inequalities in higher education pathways
Published: 27 March 2012
A nationwide study carried out as part of the research project, ETES – Os estudantes e os seus trajectos no ensino superior (14.2Mb PDF) [1] [students and their higher education pathways] has examined the factors behind the success, failure and early drop-out rates of students in higher education in Portugal. The project was developed in a partnership between the Centre for Research and Studies in Sociology, University Institute of Lisbon (CIES-IUL [2]) and the Institute of Sociology of the Faculty of Arts, University of Porto (ISFLUP [3]).[1] http://etes.cies.iscte.pt/Ficheiros/relatorio_ETES_completo.pdf[2] http://cies.iscte.pt/[3] http://isociologia.pt/index.aspx
A nationwide study by researchers from the Portuguese universities of Lisbon and Porto focused on the factors behind early drop-out rates among higher education students, and examined the influence that social, cultural and economic contexts might have on their success or failure. Detailed analysis of individual cases identified eight types of pathways taken by higher education students that are intertwined with inequalities of access and unequal distribution of resources.
About the study
A nationwide study carried out as part of the research project, ETES – Os estudantes e os seus trajectos no ensino superior (14.2Mb PDF) [students and their higher education pathways] has examined the factors behind the success, failure and early drop-out rates of students in higher education in Portugal. The project was developed in a partnership between the Centre for Research and Studies in Sociology, University Institute of Lisbon (CIES-IUL) and the Institute of Sociology of the Faculty of Arts, University of Porto (ISFLUP).
The project used a qualitative methodology based on biographical semi-directive interviews and a sample divided by variables such as:
formal outcome of the student’s school pathways (success, failure and early drop-out);
type of educational subsystem (college or polytechnic, public or private);
study area;
gender;
work experience;
social class of origin;
parents’ educational history.
Using this methodology, 170 sociological profiles of current and former students in higher education were gathered and created.
Key findings
The analysis of the sociological profiles made it possible to identify similarities which, while identifying unique and individual characteristics, also allowed eight main types of pathway of higher education students to be constructed (see table below).
| Type of pathway | Formal outcome | Total | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Success | Failure | Early drop-out | ||
| Trend pathways1 | 15 | 8 | 4 | 27 |
| Counter-trend pathways2 | 7 | 10 | 2 | 19 |
| Pathways focused on education3 | 22 | 9 | - | 31 |
| Pathways with inflections4 | 3 | 22 | 5 | 30 |
| Pathways with transition problems5 | 5 | 7 | 5 | 17 |
| Pathways with conciliation problems6 | – | 13 | 10 | 23 |
| Pathways with integration problems7 | 1 | 3 | 7 | 11 |
| Pathways with problems in the way of studying8 | – | 10 | 2 | 12 |
| Total | 53 | 82 | 35 | 170 |
Notes: 1 Expected pathways; 2 unexpected pathways; 3 students who have, almost without exception, achieved educational success; 4 combination of different phases – higher or lower involvement in studies; pathways punctuated by change and sometimes radical change; 5 transition to adult life and/or higher education; 6 problems reconciling study with the different areas of life and other responsibilities; 7 social integration (with colleagues, teachers or other students) and institutional integration; and 8 students who find it hard to study.
Source: Firmino da Costa and Teixeira Lopes (2010, Table 12.1)
Commentary
The identification and analysis of the profiles of the students’ pathways provides a real knowledge of the circumstances, causes and processes that occur in this field – more so than the simple analysis of the most common categories of ‘success’, ‘failure’ and ‘early drop-out from higher education’. The study explored the social, economic and cultural conditions (favourable or unfavourable) in which individual students live and how they make use (or not) of these conditions and are influenced by them. Different pathways are established through this interaction.
Both social conditions and active relations (that are constantly changing) are essential factors of the multiple inequalities that characterise the pathways of students in higher education. The inequalities in the pathways, identifiable in a detailed analysis of the individual cases and their social contexts, are intertwined with inequalities in access to university and with inequalities in the success in terms of the formal outcome in higher education.
Reference
Firmino da Costa, A. and Teixeira Lopes, J. (2010), ‘Desigualdades de percursos no ensino superior’ [Inequalities in higher education pathways], in Carmo, R.M. do (ed.), Desigualdades Sociais 2010: Estudos e Indicadores [Social inequalities 2010: Studies and indicators], CIES/ISCTE-IUL, Lisbon, pp. 145–152.
Heloísa Perista and Paula Carrilho, CESIS
Eurofound recommends citing this publication in the following way.
Eurofound (2012), Inequalities in higher education pathways, article.
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