The British Sociological Association

Higher Education, Inequality and Students as Political Actors

A BSA Early Career Regional Event

16 June 2025 (10.30am-6.30pm BST)
Department of Education, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK

Keynote Speaker

• Professor Agnès van Zanten (Science Po/CNRS)
• Professor Rachel Brooks (University of Oxford)

About the Event

Despite the significant expansion of higher education across various national contexts, sociologists of education have argued that increased access has not necessarily reduced social inequalities or resulted in greater equity. Patterns of segregation by social background persist, and unequal access to institutions of varying prestige remains widely documented. Yet, students do not merely experience inequality; they are also actors within a larger political system that can either perpetuate or challenge inequality in the higher education sector. Higher education institutions play a pivotal role in shaping students’ political identities and capacity for engagement while also serving as arenas for complex disputes over meanings, practices, and policies.

This event invites participants to explore key questions related to these “two sides”. It encourages reflection on, for example, how institutions design and implement widening participation policies, do these policies successfully mitigate social inequality, or do they inadvertently reinforce it? Additionally, does higher education today politicise students? How do institutional dynamics shape student politics, and in what ways are these politics expressed and enacted within higher education institutions?

Methodologically, global changes in higher education systems complicate traditional associations between social class, access to education, and political participation. While research has demonstrated how social class shapes higher education access, educational outcomes and political engagement, evolving definitions of what it means to be well-educated or less-educated present new challenges for analysis. Qualitative research can aptly help to capture these shifts. This event invites discussions on how students’ perspectives and accounts can provide insights into emerging dynamics. In a marketised global higher education, it will discuss how comparative qualitative research can enhance our understanding of the role of higher education in shaping social inequalities and political engagement across different contexts.

This workshop, designed for PhD students and Early Career Researchers, will engage with these issues through the expertise of Professor Rachel Brooks and Professor Agnès van Zanten. The event will feature keynote lectures by both speakers, small group discussions of participants’ own research projects, and a panel session on the challenges and opportunities of conducting comparative educational research.

The day will conclude with an afternoon open public seminar by Professor Agnès van Zanten.

Registration

The event is free to attend, but registration is required due to limited spaces. Lunch, tea, coffee, and snacks will be provided. Places will be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis.

Two weeks before the workshop, participants will submit a one to two-page paper describing their research topic and any methodological or conceptual challenges they are facing. These papers will be used as a basis for small group discussions.

Tentative Programme

Public Seminar (Hosted by SKOPE and GCHE centres, Department of Education, University of Oxford)

Contact Us

For any enquiries regarding the event, please contact the event organisers Paulina Rodriguez and Gonzalo Hidalgo.