‘We tend to stick together and mostly we stick to our own kind’: British Indian women and support networks at university

Bhopal, Kalwant (2011) ‘We tend to stick together and mostly we stick to our own kind’: British Indian women and support networks at university. Gender and Education, 23 (5), 519-534. (doi:10.1080/09540253.2010.512271).

Abstract

This paper will examine the support networks that are available to British Indian women studying at a ‘new’ (post 1992) university in the South East of England, UK. It will examine the support that women draw upon whilst at university and discuss the ways in which these support networks enable women to develop strategies for success. Thirty-two in-depth interviews were carried out with British Indian women who were studying for a Social Sciences or Education Studies degree in one university. All of the interviews were tape-recorded and the data transcribed. The findings suggest that British Indian women are able to use their support networks to enable them to succeed in higher education. The article will draw upon the work of Putnam (2000) to argue that within their communities at university, women engage in their support networks from which they develop ‘bonding’ and ‘bridging’ social capital.

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