Listening to individual voices and stories - the mature-age student experience

Oct 15, 2026

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Qualitative narrative research explores how university study affects 20 mature-age women and men at the University of Newcastle, including those entering through non-traditional pathways. Students, mainly from lower socio-economic backgrounds with limited family experience of higher education, face substantial hurdles in admission and continuation. The study foregrounds their triumphs, struggles, and achievements, emphasizing how publicly funded institutions can broaden access and enable diverse learners to participate fully and reach educational goals.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages15

Reading Time38 min

AccessFree to download

Listening to individual voices and stories – the mature-age student experience

Introduction and research focus

Research design and participants

Origins of the study

Barriers and supporting factors

The study’s purpose and setting

262 Barry Golding, Helen Kimberley, Annette Foley and Mike Brown Australian Journal of Adult Learning Volume 48, Number 2, July 2008 Dr Mike Brown is the Coordinator of the Bachelor of Technology Education at the University of Ballarat, a researcher and teacher educator in the areas of adult education, vocational education and training and applied learning. He has completed participatory research into community-based learning, work-based learning and applied learning. Together with other members of the RAVE team in the School of Education at the University of Ballarat, Mike has an interest in men’s participation and learning in community activities and settings. Contact Details Dr Barry Golding, School of Education, University of Ballarat, PO Box 663, Ballarat, Victoria 3353 Tel: +61 3 53279733 Fax: +61 3 53279717 Email: [b.golding@ballarat.edu.au](b.golding@ballarat.edu.au) Listening to individual voices and stories – the mature-age student experience Cathy Stone University of Newcastle, Australia This paper presents the findings ofa qualitative research project, part of a doctoral thesis, which examines the impact of university study on a group of 20 female and male mature-age students at the University of Newcastle, Australia, who have entered university via a non-traditional pathway. These students are in the second to final years of their undergraduate degree programs and have all faced significant hurdles in gaining university entrance and continuing with their studies. The majority have come from lower socio-economic backgrounds, with little, if any, family history of higher education and little positive experience of prior study. This paper gives voice to their stories – their triumphs and achievements as well as their struggles – and highlights the important role that publicly funded institutions can play, not only in widening access to higher education, but also in encouraging and assisting students from a diverse range of backgrounds to participate fully in higher education and achieve their goals. 264 Cathy Stone Listening to individual voices and stories – the mature-age student experience 265 This paper describes a ‘work in progress’ – a research project exploring the experiences of women and men along their journey as mature-age university students. The research will form the basis of a doctoral thesis which the author is undertaking with the Faculty of Education and Social Work, University of Sydney. The research is qualitative, primarily from a narrative perspective, and has involved in-depth, semi-structured interviews with 20 mature-age students in the second to final years of their degree program at the University of Newcastle, Australia, having entered university through a non-traditional pathway. Eighteen of the students entered university via the University of Newcastle’s Open Foundation Program, one entered via the STAT (Standard Tertiary Aptitude Test) and one achieved university entrance through RPL (Recognition of Prior Learning) . How did it all begin? The idea of conducting formal research to explore the experiences of mature-age students arose directly from my interest and experience as a student counsellor within a university setting. For the previous ten years, I had been providing a counselling service to students at the Ourimbah Campus of the University of Newcastle. This Campus has a particularly high proportion of mature-age students, mostly female, and through my professional work I had been hearing the personal stories of many of these students (Stone 1999) . Their stories were overwhelmingly ones of courage in the face of adversity. Most had faced significant challenges and difficulties in their journeys toward becoming university students and in their efforts to continue with and succeed with their studies. Female mature-age students were over-represented, both amongst the student population as a whole and amongst those using the counselling service. Therefore

FAQs

What is the central purpose of the paper?

The paper examines the impact of university study on mature-age students who entered through non-traditional pathways, and it highlights their triumphs and struggles.

How is the research conducted and who participates?

The research is qualitative and primarily narrative, based on in-depth semi-structured interviews with 20 mature-age students in their second to final years.

What kinds of hurdles do participants face when returning to study?

Participants describe significant challenges in gaining entrance and continuing study, including limited support and pressures related to family and other responsibilities.

Oct 15, 2026

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