ABSTRACT
Social justice is an ambiguous concept with respect to public higher education. Public university aims to make higher education accessible to all in society. On the other hand, public universities remain elitist institutions: access is limited to a minority and graduates are commonly granted a privileged status. Higher education researchers and theorists have long debated challenges and contradictions within higher education that fall into the realm of social justice. Engaging with what is meant by social justice, and how this translates into policy and practice in the context of university education, is of critical importance. This chapter also reviews some key areas such as educational transitions, notions of meritocracy and university admissions, the first-year at university, conceptions of the 'under-prepared' student and approaches to understanding and measuring university readiness. The analogy of a humpback bridge for understanding educational transition was first used in the context of the transition from primary to secondary school in England and Wales.
