Poverty Experienced by Initial Teacher Education Students in Scotland

There are significant levels of poverty and child poverty in Scotland and research has focussed on the impact of poverty on school education. However, there is more limited research on the impact of poverty on students in higher education in Scotland and the wider UK. This study focussed on the poverty experienced by students on an undergraduate initial teacher education ( ite ) degree programme in a Scottish university. The research design for this study comprised two strands. The first strand involved an electronic survey that collected both quantitative and qualitative data from 218 students. Ten interviews explored the themes highlighted in the surveys in more detail. Findings showed that students had a realistic view of the extent of poverty within Scotland and the UK, and they were experiencing poverty related to clothing, transport, food and accommodation, often in a way that was related to the demands of their distinctive university programme.