ABSTRACT
This chapter presents a critical review of the existing literature on working-class students and Western higher education, acknowledging the achievements that this research has brought as well as identifying pertinent critiques and lacunae. It focuses particularly upon literature arising from Anglo-Saxon countries and engages with four key themes that pervade the literature on higher education and the working classes: accessing university; spatial (im)mobility; the psychosocial experience of working-class students in Western higher education; and extra-credential experiences. The chapter demonstrates the considerable interest from scholars within the field of higher education that has led to a substantive body of literature of interest to academics and university widening participation and careers service personnel. This discussion briefly reviews the role of sociological theory in illuminating working-class students experiences of Western higher education. The chapter concludes by synthesising the key themes raised within this chapter whilst discussing in tandem, what past and present research implies for future research.
