Access to Higher Education for Scottish rural communities : an exploratory analysis

Abstract

Traditional socio-economic factors cannot solely explain why state secondary schools located in Scottish rural communities tend to have (i) greater variation of progressions to Higher Education (HE) year on year than other areas of Scotland, (ii) a lower three-year average progression rate to HE than the national average of 36%. This exploratory research examines some of the unique issues in accessing HE of pupils living in Scottish rural communities, in particular Argyll & Bute, Highland, Eilean Siar (Western Isles), Orkney Islands and Shetland Islands. Many of these communities are hard-to-reach and in some of the least deprived areas of Scotland. Despite this, some pupils come from disadvantaged socio-economic backgrounds. All pupils face large pecuniary and non-pecuniary costs to study at HE.