Over a year ago, my mum was accepted into Oxford for her Master’s in Global Health Leadership. While this achievement may be a significant personal milestone to some, for our family, it was a generational milestone. My mother was raised in apartheid South Africa by a single mother who could no more imagine studying at Oxford than flying to the moon. After graduating from the University of Natal—which only had a handful of places for Indian students at the time—and immigrating to a new country at the age of 23, my mum worked tirelessly to earn this place. Today, she is pursuing her studies at an institution synonymous with academic excellence. To say we were proud was an understatement.
But when celebrating my mum’s achievement, a realisation dawned on me. For many families, a place at Oxbridge or any Ivy League institution is not an extraordinary feat—it’s practically a birthright. It became clear that factors such as access to quality primary and secondary schooling, the financial stability to pursue enrichment activities, and the cultural capital to confidently navigate admission processes are often the true gatekeepers of opportunity. In essence, when we applaud the success stories emerging from these elite universities, we are frequently also applauding the quiet privileges that made their entry possible, most importantly the golden ticket of socio-economic status.
In researching this article, the statistics and metrics seemed to prove this point. In the UK, at the two most elitist universities known as “Oxbridge” (Oxford and Cambridge), 82% of offers from Oxford and 81% from Cambridge went to students in the top two socio-economic groups. In the US, research by economists Raj Chetty, David Deming and John Friedman found that students with wealthy parents enjoy a large advantage in elite college admissions that academic credentials alone cannot explain. While we might expect this from our friends on the other side of the world, it is also happening in our backyard; more than half of the Group of Eight universities have not surpassed the 10 per cent mark for domestic enrolments from a low socio-economic status.
Beyond these statistics, the conversations I had with my friends also illuminate this problem. It was through my friend, who grew up in rural NSW, that I came to realise the prevalent educational gap that existed, which often goes unnoticed. My friend was one of only four people in her cohort to sit the HSC exams. She didn’t have the privilege of multiple tutors for each subject, study tours, or copious extracurricular activities on offer – for her, even joining the sports team was considered something to “not do.” While some pockets in the rest of the state were being spoon-fed content, she was left to teach herself the curriculum. And even though she has been selected for one of the most competitive degrees in the country, it is important to acknowledge that her spot was earned not on the same level playing field as everyone else.
In that moment, I had to reassess my own privilege and the opportunities I merely took for granted.
I have been very privileged to have been born into a family that had the resources to provide me with the best opportunities. At the private all-girls school I attended in Perth, studying overseas was not a lofty goal to aspire to. It was conventional to think about moving interstate or overseas for the best opportunities beyond our small city. Yet, for many people my age, there are opportunities that seem innate to me, and are not even considered on the horizon. Thus, I often ask myself: if a 19-year-old like me grows up in a low socio-economic background, where these opportunities do not exist, how can entry into prestigious institutions like Oxford and Cambridge even seem reachable to them?
I have always believed learning should not only be available to those with wealth. While the educational sphere is realising the importance of scholarships and financial aid, there is still not enough to give all those deserving a path to receive the education they deserve. Although my mum worked hard for a place at a different stage of her life, in a perfect world, every child should be able to study at these institutions.
Of course, I understand that merit cannot be the only factor determining who receives a place in the real world. However, the world’s wealthiest institutions should rethink how they assess who gets a spot. After all, I was always taught the saying from Nelson Mandela: “Education is the most powerful weapon that you can use to change the world.”
One we should not put a monetary limit on.