Scholarlink

<p>Educational disparities persist as a&#xa0;pervasive global concern, with a&#xa0;notable contributing factor being the perpetuation of familial educational success (Apouey et&#xa0;al. <CitationRef CitationID="CR1">2022</CitationRef>; OECD <CitationRef CitationID="CR56">2018</CitationRef>). This article is centered on a&#xa0;specific equity group in higher education: working-class students bereft of the benefit of prior family higher education experiences. Employing Bourdieu’s relational theory with the conceptual framework encompassing capital and habitus, the research illuminates the role of social class background in shaping the experiences of students enrolled in Austrian state-funded universities. A&#xa0;particular focus is on how the working-class students developed a&#xa0;sense of belonging at the university.</p><p>Their transition can often be more challenging compared to students with academics as parents. Existing literature posits that building social networks and developing a&#xa0;sense of belonging can be more difficult for them (O’Shea <CitationRef CitationID="CR59">2019</CitationRef>). Despite this, the sociological literature has not yet fully explained how students develop a&#xa0;sense of belonging to the campus community. Nineteen problem-centered interviews with working-class students from various stages in their studies at state-funded Austrian universities were conducted and analyzed with the constructivist grounded theory (CGT) as delineated by Charmaz (<CitationRef CitationID="CR19">2006</CitationRef>).</p><p>The findings reveal that the interviewed students were ambivalent about their belonging to the campus community. However, building a&#xa0;sense of belonging is a&#xa0;desire of students at the beginning of their studies. Friendships with peers and relationships to the university staff can facilitate the fit to one’s university. The university itself also bears responsibility for providing institutional support (e.g., onboarding programs). In sum, the findings highlight that working-class students’ habitus are complex, and they need support to develop a&#xa0;sense of belonging at universities.</p>

错误：搜索内容不能为空，请输入英文关键词
错误：关键词超出字数限制，请精简
高级检索

Zwischen institutioneller Inklusion und Exklusion: Das Zugehörigkeitsgefühl von working-class-Studierenden an österreichischen Universitäten

  • 期刊论文

  • 出版模式：

    开放获取

  • 发表日期：

    2025年8月4日

查看全文
  • Sabine Weiß

摘要

Educational disparities persist as a pervasive global concern, with a notable contributing factor being the perpetuation of familial educational success (Apouey et al. 2022; OECD 2018). This article is centered on a specific equity group in higher education: working-class students bereft of the benefit of prior family higher education experiences. Employing Bourdieu’s relational theory with the conceptual framework encompassing capital and habitus, the research illuminates the role of social class background in shaping the experiences of students enrolled in Austrian state-funded universities. A particular focus is on how the working-class students developed a sense of belonging at the university.

Their transition can often be more challenging compared to students with academics as parents. Existing literature posits that building social networks and developing a sense of belonging can be more difficult for them (O’Shea 2019). Despite this, the sociological literature has not yet fully explained how students develop a sense of belonging to the campus community. Nineteen problem-centered interviews with working-class students from various stages in their studies at state-funded Austrian universities were conducted and analyzed with the constructivist grounded theory (CGT) as delineated by Charmaz (2006).

The findings reveal that the interviewed students were ambivalent about their belonging to the campus community. However, building a sense of belonging is a desire of students at the beginning of their studies. Friendships with peers and relationships to the university staff can facilitate the fit to one’s university. The university itself also bears responsibility for providing institutional support (e.g., onboarding programs). In sum, the findings highlight that working-class students’ habitus are complex, and they need support to develop a sense of belonging at universities.