Chapter 6: Andy’s Story

This chapter offers a narrative account of Andy, an Afghan man who was offered special humanitarian refuge in Australia on account of his work for the Australian Defence Force in Afghanistan. It draws on repeat interviews and non-official interactions conducted over a four-year period as part of a longitudinal ethnographic project that explored the educational transitions of refugee students entering HE via three different departure points (see Baker et al., forthcoming for further detail). The chapter offers critical description of Andy’s transitions into, out of and back into education as he negotiated a trajectory between his recent past, his settlement present, and his possible (educational and employment) future. Similar to Aaliyah, this chapter traces the challenges and successes of Andy’s journey in chronological order. Andy’s case depicts the real-time challenges of a single man navigating the settlement and tertiary education systems concurrently, while seeking to make himself an employable subject – both in the short and longer term – and coping with the stresses of leaving family and trying to establish a new life in Australia.