The spatial dynamics of race in the transition to university: Diverse cities and White campuses in U.K. higher education

Gamsu, Sol; Donnelly, Michael; Harris, Richard

doi:10.1002/psp.2222

The spatial dynamics of race in the transition to university: Diverse cities and White campuses in U.K. higher education

Gamsu, Sol; Donnelly, Michael; Harris, Richard

Authors

Dr Sol Gamsu sol.j.gamsu@durham.ac.uk
Assistant Professor

Michael Donnelly

Richard Harris

Abstract

Using exceptionally detailed administrative data on all 412,000 students attending university in the United Kingdom in 2014–2015 combined with spatial census data from 2011, we explore for the first time how the ethnic composition of where students grow up is linked to where they attend university. We calculate a “diversity score” for every U.K. university, which is then compared with the ethnic diversity of the surrounding area, allowing us to explore the institutional geography of ethnicity in U.K. universities. These scores provide the basis for a multilevel analysis of factors influencing whether students move towards more or less ethnically diverse universities than where they have grown up. White students are more likely than their ethnic‐minority peers to move towards a university that is more diverse than their home neighbourhood. We thus explore how students' mobility decisions for university are influenced by the uneven geography of race in U.K. cities and universities.

Citation

Gamsu, S., Donnelly, M., & Harris, R. (2019). The spatial dynamics of race in the transition to university: Diverse cities and White campuses in U.K. higher education. Population, Space and Place, 25(5), Article e2222. https://doi.org/10.1002/psp.2222

Journal Article Type	Article
Acceptance Date	Oct 1, 2018
Online Publication Date	Dec 4, 2018
Publication Date	Jul 31, 2019
Deposit Date	Jan 16, 2019
Publicly Available Date	Dec 4, 2020
Journal	Population, Space and Place
Print ISSN	1544-8444
Electronic ISSN	1544-8452
Publisher	Wiley
Peer Reviewed	Peer Reviewed
Volume	25
Issue	5
Article Number	e2222
DOI	https://doi.org/10.1002/psp.2222

Files

Accepted Journal Article (755 Kb)
PDF

Copyright Statement
This is the accepted version of the following article: Gamsu, Sol, Donnelly, Michael & Harris, Richard (2019). The spatial dynamics of race in the transition to university: Diverse cities and White campuses in U.K. higher education. Population, Space and Place 25(5): e2222, which has been published in final form at https://doi.org/10.1002/psp.2222. is article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance With Wiley Terms and Conditions for self-archiving.