Māori (Indigenous New Zealand) university graduates are role models for educational success and are critical for the social and economic wellbeing of Māori whānau (extended family) and communities. In this study, Māori graduates ( N = 626) from all eight New Zealand universities participated in the Graduate Longitudinal Study New Zealand between July and December 2011. They were asked to describe factors that they found helpful or challenging to the completion of their qualifications. Graduates described a range of external (e.g. family), institutional (e.g. academic support), and student or personal (e.g. persistence) factors. Describing the experiences of Māori graduates can provide a blueprint for future indigenous success by building an evidence base of the factors that may promote indigenous higher educational achievement in New Zealand and internationally.

Increasing the numbers of Pacific Island students who graduate from New Zealand universities is important for the students' futures, their families, communities, and society in general. In the present study, Pacific graduates (N=365) who are participants in the Graduate Longitudinal Study New Zealand were asked to describe what factors helped or hindered their qualification completion. Graduates from all eight New Zealand universities were surveyed between July and December 2011. Pacific graduates identified external (for example, family), institutional (for example, university staff), and student/personal (for example, motivation) factors that both helped and hindered the successful completion of their studies. Understanding the hindrance factors faced by Pacific students and the factors that have contributed to their educational success can help to inform policy and practice to achieve national priorities of equity and successful outcomes for Pacific learners.

Higher education confers significant private and social benefits. Māori and Pacific peoples are under-represented within New Zealand universities and have poorer labour market outcomes (e.g., lower wages, under-represented in skilled professions). A New Zealand tertiary education priority is to boost Māori and Pacific success in an effort to improve outcomes for these graduates, their communities and society in general. Using information collected in the Graduate Longitudinal Study New Zealand, we compared Māori and Pacific university graduate outcomes with outcomes of other New Zealand graduates. Data were collected when the participants were in their final year of study (n=8719) and two years post-graduation (n=6104). Employment outcomes were comparable between Māori, Pacific and other New Zealand graduates at two years post-graduation; however, Māori and Pacific graduates had significantly higher student debt burden and financial strain over time. They were significantly more likely to help others (e.g., family) across a range of situations (e.g., lending money), and reported higher levels of volunteerism compared to their counterparts. Boosting higher education success for Māori and Pacific students has the potential to reduce ethnic inequalities in New Zealand labour market outcomes and may result in significant private benefits for these graduates and social benefits as a result of their contribution to society.

Christchurch's earthquakes revealed children's vulnerability to disaster but also their ability to respond and play an active role in recovery. We argue that children's voices need to be heard and given priority in the recovery process because the disaster impacts on them and their families in ways that are not recognised or well understood. We report the findings of a study undertaken with 94 Christchurch children. Its aim was to give voice to children's experiences of post-earthquake Christchurch and in doing so contribute to postdisaster recovery. The experiences of these Christchurch children offer other children, parents, government and agencies valuable insights into how to manage the recovery process in ways that best meet children's needs. In the post-disaster recovery period, decision-makers need to recognise children as authentic actors in the recovery process and should commit to hearing children's voices throughout the rebuilding. Children and young people's resilience and positive commitment to Christchurch are assets that should be capitalised on in the longer-term recovery process.

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