Meritocratic and fair? The discourse of UK and Australia's widening participation policies

Abstract

Introduction Globally, people with the academic and personal attributes to successfully study medicine experience disadvantages associated with sociodemographic factors. Governments have attempted to address this issue via macrolevel policies aimed at widening participation (WP) to medicine. These policies differ by country, suggesting much can be learned from examining and comparing international policy discourses of WP. Our question was: How are discourses of WP to higher and medical education positioned in the UK and Australia? Methods A systematic search strategy was guided by five a priori themes inspired by United Nations Sustainability Goals (2015). Seventeen policy documents (UK n = 9, Australia n = 8) published between 2008 and 2018 were identified. Analysis involved two over‐arching, iterative stages: a document analysis then a Foucauldian critical discourse analysis, the latter with the aim of unveiling the power dynamics at play within policy‐related discourses. Results Discourses of social mobility and individual responsibility within a meritocracy are still paramount in the UK. In contrast, the dominant discourse in Australia is social accountability in achieving equity and workforce diversity, prioritising affirmative action and community values. Similarities between the two countries in terms of WP policy and policy levers have changed over time, linked to the divergence of internal drivers for societal change. Both nations recognise tensions inherent in striving to achieve both local and global goals, but Australia appears to prioritise community values in working towards ‘nation building’ whereas in the UK the focus on individuality and meritocracy at times seems at odds with achieving parity for disadvantaged individuals. Discussion WP policies and practices are situated and contextual so caution must be taken when extrapolating lessons from one context to another. The history of a country and the nature of marginalisation in that country must be scrutinised when trying to understand what drives WP policy.

Challenging the deficit discourse in medical schools through reverse mentoring—using discourse analysis to explore staff perceptions of under-represented medical students

“…42 43 The fairy-tale endings of the initial texts evoke the social mobility discourse, which reflects that a university education breaks 'the transmission of disadvantage from one generation to the next' (p.231), 44 and is commonly promoted as the main purpose and benefit of widening participation in medicine in the UK. 19 45 46 While HE does enable social mobility for many students, 45 47 when presented alongside a deficit discourse, the social mobility narrative can reinforce perceptions that by attending university, under-represented students move from being 'not good enough' to being 'more like the advantaged' (p.11) 46 and in alignment with middle class values. 18 48 The university is cast as the gracious patron who grants these students a golden opportunity to achieve 'better jobs' and to 'better myself' (p.564).…”

Cultures of Success: How elite students develop and realise aspirations to study Medicine

“…If degrees such as Medicine remain hegemonic within student preferences in elite schools, the opportunities for students from disadvantaged schools to gain access will stay vanishingly small. This suggests that changing this imbalance requires further, fundamental re-orientation of Medicine selection ethos and procedures (Coyle et al, 2021;Curtis, 2020), and to ensure that such re-orientation is understood in schools and families. Otherwise, the culture of a large proportion of the medical school applicant cohort will continue to embody a narrow range of approaches to, and philosophies about, learning, notably, those that emphasise strategic calculation and instrumental decision-making.…”

“…There have been some attempts at addressing these imbalances, with medical schools re-orienting their selection ethos and procedures (Coyle et al, 2021;Curtis & Smith, 2020;Fielding et al, 2018). For example, the heavy weighting placed on high academic attainment has been widely identified as a barrier for admission into medical schools, particularly for those from disadvantaged backgrounds (Griffin & Hu, 2015).…”

Authors’ Reply

“…The widening access landscape in Australia and the UK differs. For example, Coyle et al 5 compared widening participation to higher and medical education across the two countries. They found that discourses of social mobility and individual responsibility are still paramount in the UK.…”