Pathways to inclusion in European higher education systems

This paper presents biographical data from the European Science Foundation-project Quali-TYDES, a collaborative research study underway since 2010 at universities from Ireland, Austria, Spain and the Czech Republic. The project analysed accounts of the experiences of persons with disabilities, most aged between 20 and 30. It is a generation educated in a time of radical policy shifts in the educational sector in all involved countries. This paper will solely focus on the narratives of interviewees who had access to tertiary education. Using a life course model developed by Priestley and Shah, the paper will discuss which institutional pathways facilitated the access to higher education, which transitions and turning points could be identified in the individual biographies, and which resources and capital were activated to what effect. The data show that economic, social and cultural capital, including family resources, advocacy and social networks, are necessary to access inclusive pathways. In the long run public service provisions, notably personal assistance, can facilitate greater educational attainment and increase the opportunities for self-determination.