In England, more students from a wider range of backgrounds participate in higher education than in
previous generations. This has led to a focus on how students from diverse backgrounds can fit
better with existing higher education institutions. This is often framed in terms of ‘deficits’ that
these students have to overcome to ...
In England, more students from a wider range of backgrounds participate in higher education than in
previous generations. This has led to a focus on how students from diverse backgrounds can fit
better with existing higher education institutions. This is often framed in terms of ‘deficits’ that
these students have to overcome to more closely resemble the ‘implied’ or ‘ideal’ students around
which institutions are, often unconsciously, modelled. We flip this focus by thinking about how
educational institutions can evolve in response to diverse students. We use the theoretical lens of
the hidden curriculum to explore student perceptions of ‘ideal’ students. Findings are based on
research with eight students as co-researchers and 24 further student participants in an
academically selective English higher education institution. We find that there are many aspects of
hidden or assumed practices within universities students encounter when first coming to higher
education. Focusing specifically on learning environments and curricula, we found that there was an
implied student at the institution, that this mattered for the experience of learning – and that
consciousness of hidden processes helps. We conclude by suggesting that instead of focusing on
how to change students to fit institutions, institutions need to be open and adaptable to all students.