Refugees and equity policy in Australian higher education

Measured in per capita terms, Australia has one of the most generous refugee resettlement programs in the world. This paper investigates the extent to which refugee status is recognized as a category of disadvantage in Australian higher education. Drawing on a scalar view of policy work and Fraser’s notion of misframing, the paper assesses the policy visibility of humanitarian entrants. It compares sectoral equity provisions with national and institutional arrangements that target refugees. The findings reveal scalar misalignments. That is, although national educational and multicultural initiatives recognize refugee status as a category of disadvantage, refugees remain hidden from the sectoral policy view. However, in translating sectoral policies, many universities have managed to maintain a balance between compliant enactment of equity strategies and responsive adjustment of equity targets. The paper also highlights instances of policy misframing – equity provisions that target refugees are characterized by issue omissions and deficit accounts. It is further argued that the convergence of scalar misalignment and policy misframing constitutes a structural factor of disadvantage that inhibits higher education participation of refugees. For Australia to fully integrate humanitarian entrants, there is an urgent need for a streamlined policy response to the educational needs and aspirations of the group.