Muslim Students in UK Higher Education: Issues of Inequality and Inequity

• In Event: Religion on College Campuses: Experiences of Muslim, Jewish, Christian, and Religiously Unaffiliated Students in the United States and United Kingdom

Abstract

Young Muslims in the UK—particularly those from Pakistani and Bangladeshi backgrounds—tend to have lower educational and employment outcomes than their non-Muslim peers, despite the fact that their educational aspirations are high (Social Mobility Commission, 2016; Stevenson, 2016). Some limited evidence suggests that Muslim students are less happy with their teaching (Neves & Hillman, 2016) and more likely to be disappointed in their student experience (Higher Education Funding Council for England, 2016; Neves & Hillman, 2016). To date, however, little research has been conducted with UK Muslim students to explore the reasons for their unequal experiences. In order to fill this gap, this paper presents findings from interviews with just under 100 Muslim students (including those seeking to enter college as well as undergraduate and graduate students). The biographical interviews were analyzed to explore students’ perceptions of being Muslim on the secular campus in relation to both their social and their academic experiences. Overall, the findings highlight several concerns regarding a lack of positive attention toward religious diversity, being viewed as suspicious and threatening, and the potential for verbal and physical violence.

Author

• Jacqueline Stevenson