TUITION WAIVERS AND EDUCATIONAL EQUITY: SUPPORTING FORMER YOUTH IN CARE IN HIGHER EDUCATION

Youth with lived experience in the child welfare system face significant barriers to accessing and succeeding in higher education, resulting in socioeconomic and health disparities as compared to their peers.Tuition waiver programs are designed to reduce these barriers by mitigating financial obstacles to accessing post-secondary education.This study explored the effectiveness of such programs through interviews with 31 stakeholders, including former youth in care, institutional staff, and community professionals.Using an emergent theme content analysis framework, ten key themes were identified, highlighting critical challenges such as financial limitations beyond tuition, lack of program awareness, and the need for holistic wraparound supports.These findings emphasize the importance of integrating dedicated mentorship, culturally responsive support systems, and flexible success metrics into tuition waiver programs.This research provides practical insights that may be drawn on to improve the effectiveness of tuition waiver programs in promoting educational access for former youth in care.