Exploring how children of separated parents go through the tertiary education system and what their support systems are

Abstract

Firstly, this dissertation aims to explore how children of separated parents experience the tertiary education system and what their support systems are. Parental separation includes marital dissolution, a de facto separation, divorce or dissolution of an intimate relationship between two parents. This area was chosen since secularism in Malta is on the increase and more students are enrolling into higher education courses. Since the research study seeks to explore the direct experiences of young adults with separated parents in tertiary education, a qualitative stance using Thematic Analysis was deemed the most appropriate for this research. The chosen methods consisted of semi-structured interviews, which were held with eight participants who were either reading for a degree or completed an undergraduate course, and all had parents who separated for a minimum of five years prior to the interview. The findings indicate that tertiary education is linked with a number of stressors on its own and parental support, having a trusting relationship with a parent and financial security are key factors which shield from possible risk factors. When parental support is lacking, the effects of parental separation increase on young adults and are also evident during tertiary education. The data also shows that among the participants who sought professional help, it was common for their parents’ separation to come out in the sessions, even when they would initially seek help for another matter. Following the findings, the conclusion shows that what constitutes the type of the university experience and what differentiates it from a positive to a one deemed slightly more problematic when having parents who did not remain intact, depends on a number of prevalent factors. This research hints that greater attention to service development and initiating an awareness strategy will result in young adults with separated parents in tertiary education making use of adequate, support-based services. This will allow the students to discuss own thoughts and feelings related to parental separation, learn coping strategies to deal with any events related to separation and assist in referring them to schemes shall there is financial difficulties