Socio-economic Status and School Types as the Determinants of Access to Higher Education

Abstract

This study aims to evaluate the impact of socio-economic status and the type of secondary school at which a student studied, on their access to higher education. The conceptual framework around this is discussed within the framework of Bourdieu’s theory of reproduction. The study was carried out in two complementary stages where different research approaches were used. In this study we used sequential explanatory design as a mixed method strategy, which uses both quantitative and qualitative approaches. Based on the mixed model approach, our research involved two study groups. The study group, which was part of the quantitative research, consisted of 983 newly enrolled first year students at Trakya University, in 2017. The study group, which was used for the qualitative part of the research, consisted of 26 students from eight different faculties, two different colleges, and four different vocational schools affiliated with Trakya University, in the spring semester of the 2018 academic year. The quantitative data was collected by the “Determinants of Access to Higher Education Survey,” which had been developed by the researcher. A Chi-Square test was used to test whether students’ opinions differ according to the departments (faculties and colleges) in which they study. Qualitative data was obtained through “the focus group” interview and analyzed using a descriptive analysis technique. The results of this study indicate that: 1) The socio-economic status of students, the quality of pre-higher education experiences, students’ preparation process for higher education, and higher education decisions, are contingent on students’ ability to be decisive and efficient. 2) There is a significant relationship between social class, as determined by the education level of the family, the parental profession, and family income, and the faculty/field of their higher education. 3) Lower class students and their families view higher education as a human capital investment which can help to improve their income and living conditions in the future. When the overall results of this research were evaluated we were able to understand that an individual’s social, economic, and cultural capital, was the main determinant of access to higher education.