One key aim of this network is the ability for members to try and reach out to others doing work in a particular area. This month we have a question from one of our members concerning gender and university admissions, as follows:

There is concern around working class white men and access to HE – women are now more likely to get in to HE than men are to apply. This has been covered in the media http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/universityeducation/10449864/UCAS-chief-warns-over-worrying-university-gender-gap.html

But is this phenomenon to do with HE admissions, or rather is it a symptom of the difficulty women face in entering employment with opportunities for progression in local, low/medium skilled labour markets? This makes the opportunity cost of HE much lower for women than for men. Conversely, male dominance in those same labour markets makes the opportunity cost of HE much higher.

If you are able to help with this question, or have done some related research in this area, please leave a reply to this posting below.