“If we can grow them here it just makes sense”: Disrupting higher education narratives through Country University Centres in regional and rural Australia

The underrepresentation of regional, rural, and remote (RRR) students in Australian higher education has been an enduring and consistent concern for governments and universities. Despite decades of policy and funding efforts, RRR student enrolments and completion levels remain stubbornly low. However, the Regional University Study Hub (RUSH) program, which includes Country Universities Centre (CUCs), have shifted the ‘business as usual’ model to enable students to study locally with support. The CUCs as part of the RUSH program provide high quality facilities in country Australia with computer and high-speed internet access, learning spaces and individualised learning and other support from on-site staff. This has disrupted dominant narratives around how RRR students can engage with higher education. These include the idea that residents need to leave regional areas to engage with higher education (‘go to grow’), that universities are best placed to determine how to engage RRR communities, and that online learning is second-best and isolating. Drawing on data from a mixed methods study we examine how CUCs leverage community assets to facilitate connections to support localised participation in higher education, engage with their local communities, and impact the liveability of RRR communities.