DIVERSITY IN RURAL STUDENTS: IDENTIFYING STUDENT LEARNING NEEDS

Abstract

Diverse university student cohorts are becoming the norm in rural universities. As universities reach out to an increasingly diverse group of students in rural areas it has become evident that traditional support structures are inadequate to meet the needs of students who tend to be mature aged women and first generation students. Studies have . shown thot students from rural and geographically isolated areas and particularly socioeconomicaily disadvantaged groups are more at risk of failure. Several reports have shown that rural areas have major shortages of professionals such as nurses. As a result of this the need for universities to examine their support structures, so that this diverse group of students is given every opportunity to succeed, is vitaily important (Howells, 2003; McInnis, 2001 & Tinto 1993). This article reports on a project that was conducted with a group of rural nursing students that identifies the types of support structures relevant to the new student profile described above. The project strives to identify university students' learning needs and expectations and evaluate resources and strategies utilised to facilitate their learning experience from the students' perspective. The results of this research reinjorce a change in the student cohort to refiect a female dominant, mature aged cohort in a rural campus. Many of these students are first generation and more educated than there parents. This project has identified that their learning needs are diverse and thot further research needs to be undertaken to develop an understanding of their learning needs and how best to meet these.