Prioritising literacy is a fundamental first step towards addressing equity issues in higher education.
While international students do need baseline proficiency in English, they need support the whole way through their degrees to actually be successful.
Federal government policies are the biggest barriers to people seeking asylum in accessing higher education in Australia.
Difficulty with English language can mask other difficulties that culturally and linguistically diverse students may have, such as autism or dyslexia.
New research suggests universities and schools need to implement mentoring programs and provide increased language assistance to help refugees get equal educational opportunities.
