Education Denied: People Seeking Asylum and Refugees Trapped in Limbo

Abstract

Since 2012, the processing of refugee claims for those who arrived by boat have been effectively frozen, leaving thousands of people in indefinite limbo. These people are effectively excluded from accessing higher education by current government policy. This paper gives voice to six people who have been excluded from accessing higher education in Australia because they came here by boat. Using data collected by the Refugee Council of Australia, this paper explores and presents how these people were excluded from education, how they were determined to get education, and their desire to give back to the Australian community. It concludes by recommending that the current policy be changed to allow access to higher education for people in this situation.

Keywords: refugees, asylum seekers, education, human rights