Bridging the gap: do you truly feel at home at university?
One of my key drivers as an educator is to support students to achieve their goals. Starting university is a big change - new people, new surroundings and a whole new way of learning. Feeling like you belong plays a crucial role in helping students settle in and succeed academically. A sense of belonging at university isn’t just about making friends - it directly impacts academic performance, satisfaction and even the likelihood of completing the degree (Yildirim et al., 2021).
Identifying the problem
We often talk about the "attainment gap" - the statistical reality that across higher education, White students and Home students often achieve higher grades than their minoritised ethnic or International peers. We see this in the School of Psychology too, particularly in core final-year modules. Since these grades are crucial for overall attainment, I wanted to dig deeper to see if we could spot warning signs early in the academic journey. By looking at social integration, mental wellbeing and "hidden barriers" we can start to see and unpick the complex set of factors that underpin academic success.
Who took part?
About half our 1st year Psychology students participated in a questionnaire-based study - mostly 18 to 19-year-olds. Our Home student group was predominantly White (88%), while our International student group was more diverse, with nearly half identifying as Asian.
Why belonging matters
We used an adapted "Sense of Belonging" scale to see how connected students felt to the School and the wider University. International students consistently had a lower sense of belonging compared to Home students. International student sense of belonging was generally good within the School of Psychology; however, the difference was much larger for the wider University. This suggests that students feel more ‘at home’ in their subject area but this might not translate to the institution as a whole.
What helped belonging?
- Societies: students involved in clubs or societies felt a much stronger sense of belonging.
- Informal networks: students said peer networks are vital, however many wanted to connect with other students, but they weren’t always sure how.
The challenge of academic adjustment
Adjusting to university is a complex process; using an adapted adjustment scale we found that International students had much lower overall adjustment which was driven by Social Adjustment and Institutional Attachment, mirroring findings from the Sense of Belonging measure.
The "barrier load"
I asked students to indicate which of a list of potential barriers to learning they faced. I then calculated a "barrier load" and the results were clear: the more barriers students experienced, the harder it was to adjust and belong.
For International students, three barriers stood out:
- Financial stress: costs associated with university were linked to lower belonging and poorer adaptation.
- Language confidence: while language barriers didn't necessarily lower sense of belonging, they significantly hindered ability to adjust to the academic environment.
- Digital access: International students were more likely to struggle with the digital requirements of university. This may also be associated with the costs of technology; there is often the misconception that International students are wealthy, when for many International students this is very far from the case.
The "hidden" groups: disability and mental health
One of the most concerning findings involved a "support gap." When I asked about disabilities and "differences," a pattern emerged; students with physical disabilities were likely to have a formal Learning Support Plan. However, students struggling with mental health, the largest group expressing a "difference", were the least likely to have support in place. Whether this is because of perceived stigma around disclosure or simply not knowing help is available, these students are completing their degree without the support they need in place. This has a ripple effect: poorer mental health was linked to lower adjustment and belonging scores, which has the potential to affect overall attainment.
Moving forward: where do we go from here?
The School of Psychology is already taking steps. We’ve put up "Welcome" posters written in every language our staff and students speak, and we’re hosting movie nights, research events and journal clubs to help build community.
In addition, different researcher groups have recently undertaken qualitative research with ethnic minority, first-generation, mature and neurodiverse students. The goal? To turn this research into a concrete action plan; we want to ensure that every student has an equal chance to reach their full potential.
Key learning:
- Belonging is a predictor, not just a feeling: a sense of belonging isn't just a "nice-to-have" social factor; it is fundamental to academic performance and retention. The "attainment gap" is often a "belonging gap" in disguise.
- The "support gap" in mental health: students with poor mental health are the least likely to have formal Learning Support Plans. This suggests a need for better signposting and support to reduce the stigma of disclosure.
- "Barrier load": students often aren't facing one challenge; they may carry a "load" of multiple barriers. These barriers have a cumulative negative effect.
- Financial stress: a barrier to adjusting and belonging.
What do you do in your institution to develop belonging?
Rebecca Denniss is a teaching specialist Lecturer and Senior Fellow in the School of Psychology at the University of Sheffield. As the course lead for a core Undergraduate module in her School, she engages in pedagogical research to reduce barriers to learning, in whatever form they might take.
References
Yildirim, H. H., Zimmermann, J., & Jonkmann, K. (2021). The importance of a sense of university belonging for the psychological and academic adaptation of international students in Germany. Zeitschrift für Entwicklungspsychologie und Pädagogische Psychologie.