Access, participation and capabilities: theorising the contribution of university bursaries to students’ well-being, flourishing and success

Abstract

For the last ten years, universities in England have been expected to offer financial support to low income students alongside that provided by government. These bursaries were initially conceived in terms of improving access for under-represented groups, but attention has turned to their role in supporting student retention and success. This paper reports two qualitative studies undertaken by contrasting universities that have been brought together due to their complementary findings. Semi-structured interviews were undertaken with a total of 98 students. Students views on bursaries and how they impact on their lives are reported and used to develop a descriptive model of the web of choices that students have in balancing finances and time. This is contextualised within Sen's 'capabilities approach', to argue that providing access to higher education is insufficient if disadvantaged students are not able to flourish by participating fully in the university experience.

Academic Performance and Physical Activities as Positive Factors for Life Satisfaction among University Students

“…In addition to GPA, this research has shown that other factors may be influential regarding one's satisfaction with one's university experience, such as whether one is able to finance one's education or not. This study supports findings that financial independence has an impact on university students' LS [57], concurring with the literature that self-financing students were more affected by stress stemming from financial burdens, resulting in lower levels of well-being [58]. The study presented here also reflects on lower satisfaction with one's family life, as Cloutier and Roy [59] also pointed to several spheres of parental influence on personal finance among undergraduate students affecting one's university experience.…”

Examining the epistemology of impact and success of educational interventions using a reflective case study of university bursaries

“…Interestingly, evidence from a large‐scale survey commissioned by OFFA found that relatively few students considered bursaries when making choices about entering higher education or which university to choose (Callender et al ., ), which is consistent with smaller studies (Davies et al ., ; Harrison et al ., forthcoming) and other national studies (Purcell et al ., ) in finding that students afford financial (dis)incentives a low status in their decision‐making.…”

“…In recent years, therefore, bursaries have been conceptualised less as a means of encouraging applications (either in general or to specific institutions) and more in terms of providing funds to enable students from low‐income and other disadvantaged backgrounds to participate fully in the higher education experience; in other words, less as a financial inducement and more a tool to support student retention and achievement. Indeed, there is evidence from qualitative studies that students find that the bursary reduces stress and anxiety, lowers the need to undertake part‐time work, improves academic engagement and creates a motivational reciprocity with their university (Harrison et al ., , forthcoming; Byrne & Cushing, ; Crockford et al ., ; Hoare & Lightfoot, ; O'Brien, ). Both students and practitioners believe that bursaries are an effective tool (Callender & Wilkinson, ; Nursaw Associates, ; Bowes et al ., ), but given the current situation where every university has one or more schemes with unique eligibility criteria, amounts, means‐test algorithm and procedures, it is reasonable to hypothesise that some will be more effective than others.…”

“…Marshall & Case, ; Clegg, ; Modood, ; McKay & Devlin, ); these are exceptionally difficult to measure with reliability. Students may also simply adopt more frugal lifestyles to allow them to focus their limited finances and time towards the expenditure with the most academic value, eschewing elements of the stereotypical student experience (Harrison et al ., forthcoming).…”

‘You got into Oxbridge?’ Under‐represented students’ experiences of an elite university in the south of England

“…Research directly examining issues of equity is warranted (Boliver, 2013;Crawford et al, 2017), and made more so given the growing body of evidence demonstrating that what undergraduates study and where has significant prestigieuse, ainsi que leur expérience sociale et académ- repercussions for their employment and earnings prospects (Britton, Dearden, Shepard, & Vignoles, 2016;Social Mobility & Child Poverty Commission, 2014;Sullivan, Parsons, Green, Wiggins, & Ploubidis., 2018;. What can practically be done to assist students from under-represented backgrounds gain access to and flourish at prestigious universities, however, remains unclear (Bathmaker et al, 2016;Harrison, Davies, Harris, & Waller, 2018;O'Sullivan, Robson, & Winters, 2018;Younger, Gascoine, Menzies, & Torgeson, 2018).…”