Understanding and managing identity: working-class students at the University of Oxford

ABSTRACT

This study aims to add to the literature that explores the experiences of working-class students within elite higher education institutions. It has been undertaken at a time when there is a shift in higher education policy around access and widening participation: from applications and admissions to supporting students throughout the entire lifecycle. Considering the focus of such policy on upward intergenerational social mobility, it explores students’ experiences through the lens of identity, considering Bourdieu’s theory of cultural capital. Fifteen undergraduate students, who self-defined as working-class and attended the University of Oxford participated in semi-structured narrative interviews. It was found that working-class students appear to continue to face disadvantage during their time at university. Participants often encountered academic and social situations which served to reinforce ideas of a typical Oxford student, which they perceived as not being inclusive of their working-class identity.

KEYWORDS:

• Higher education
• working-class
• identity
• access
• widening participation
• cultural capital

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1. It is worth noting that ACORN as a measure has been recommended as a means for better understanding household income of students (Sutton Trust 2021).

2. As a result of the low number of students from minority ethnic backgrounds at Oxford (Boliver 2016), details of individual students’ ethnic identity (and course details) will not be shared.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Éireann Attridge

Éireann Attridge is the Programme Manager for The Elephant Group, a charity that aims to increase the number of non-selective state schools students at top universities. She has an BA (Hons) in Education and English from the University of Cambridge and an MSc in Education (Higher Education) from the University of Oxford. She has worked in widening participation roles across a range of university and school settings and has presented her research and spoken on panels at a range of conferences including those for NEON, WonkHE, University of Derby, University of Leeds and University of Oxford. Éireann is also a trustee for Goldsmiths Students’ Union and is a Tutor at Homerton College, Cambridge.