Navigating the terrain of higher education

This chapter highlights some of the challenges faced by refugee youth as they negotiate the alien terrain of higher education. Drawing on interviews and case studies of refugee-background youth and university staff (academic and support), we document the journeys of students through three phases of their tertiary edu­cation: gelling in to university, getting through their tertiary studies and getting on to employment in their chosen career. We argue that despite high aspirations and a desire to transition to tertiary education, refugee youth at university face a range of challenges in relation to the directed support so necessary for successful transition and participation at university. These challenges are examined in terms of two of the six key themes that emerged in our case study of refugee youth pathways from school to university: aspiration and politics and policy.