Student success has an identity problem

In a culture driven by metrics, student success tends to be defined by continuation rates, degree outcomes, and progression.

But these tell us nothing about how students’ sense of self develops while they’re at university. What this approach often gets wrong is equating persistence with thriving, and attainment with development.

For Black British students, “success” isn’t only about marks or career outcomes – it’s about making sense of themselves within a system that doesn’t affirm them. Although microaggressions are individually minor, their sheer volume creates harm.

Through Brianah’s doctoral research, we studied a group of Black British students at a mid-ranked UK university where Black students make up a rising proportion of the cohort. Using the Listening Rooms method, she listened closely to their experiences.

The research showed how students made sense of their ethnic identities as both Black and British – and how that process was central to their attainment goals as well as their wider development.

Belonging isn’t enough

Educators already acknowledge the importance of belonging and its connection to continuation and other student success indicators, and universities invest in peer mentoring, tailored welcome events, and other community-building initiatives with belonging in mind. But these initiatives often just skim the surface – belonging is frequently framed as “fitting in” rather than expressing authentic selves.

Our work suggests that belonging and Black British students’ ethnic identity development are deeply linked. Opportunities, challenges, and new experiences in higher education help young people gain independence, work out who they are, and who they might become in the wider world – and for ethnically minoritised students, identity development includes an ongoing process of understanding, affirming, and forming one’s ethnic identity.

When studying in a predominantly white institutional space, identity development can’t be separated from feelings of belonging – it’s not simply feeling comfortable, but being recognised.

The daily labour

Participants talked openly about the labour they put in every day just to survive at university – working out how to handle social settings, code-switching, deciding when to speak or stay silent, and managing stereotypes and microaggressive behaviour. Over time, these experiences shaped how they saw themselves.

They described recurring, everyday interactions and how these wore on them. Alex talked about a seminar where the instructor singled them out with personal questions not asked of the white students. Sidney drew stares in the lab every time they changed their hair – though the lab safety items wouldn’t even fit over it. Blake’s flatmates felt it was better that Blake’s food go in a second fridge to avoid “the smell.”

I’m always second-guessing myself, like am I being sensitive or…? Is this mad? Am I mad? Like you start to proper doubt yourself..” – Alex

It makes you feel so watched when you’re just like trying to get through your days man. Like you’re just small and judged..” – Sidney

Like my flat, you don’t wanna be that person who’s always complaining, so you just firm it. Like I don’t even react anymore because it’s bare normal now. I’m uncomfortable, its whatever…but like that’s the problem innit?” – Blake

In the safety of a conversation with a trusted peer, these students spoke honestly about how repeatedly feeling interrogated, small, judged, and uncomfortable held back their growth. This environment of hyper-visibility prevented them from becoming their best selves – feeling pressured to adjust parts of themselves to “fit,” they limited their participation, lost trust in lectures, and lowered their expectations of institutional care.

By contrast, students who felt supported enough to affirm their ethnic identity reported greater wellbeing, comfort, increased confidence in social settings, and stronger internal values.

I won’t lie, when I’m with people who get it, it feels easier, like normal. It’s calm….It’s complicated, like I’m here, but uni is easier when I’m not like dealing with nonsense.” – Ken

While both groups of students continued their studies, only the second felt successful. These accounts show how everyday microaggressions within teaching and peer interactions contribute to self-doubt and withdrawal among Black students – and these harms occur within university spaces, classrooms, and residence halls, pointing to the need for a structural response that extends beyond individual support.

Beyond the margins

Universities often treat identity-related work as marginal – assuming it’ll be addressed by student cultural societies, one-off diversity events, and specialised staff roles. But identity development is shaped by everyday teaching, curriculum, and institutional norms. When universities fail to acknowledge their role in this, Black British students end up developing coping tactics like code-switching in environments that should be supporting their growth.

We argue that recognising ethnic identity development as co-curricular requires practical shifts in how universities operate. Curriculum design should treat diverse scholarship and epistemologies as foundational rather than optional, inclusive educational spaces need clear and consistent principles guiding staff and student behaviour, and universities should reframe student success to include positive ethnic identity development – through staff training, policy metrics, and institutional messaging. These changes would target the everyday doubt described above by reshaping the institutional conditions that produce it.

Retention, belonging, and wellbeing are already recognised as interconnected institutional goals – we’d argue that identity development is the glue binding them together. Without it, students may “succeed” while silently shrinking themselves. Black British students left to piece together their sense of who they are may develop defensive coping strategies that let them survive but not thrive – and the recommendations here specifically target the university structures that make this the norm.

For Black British students, ethnic identity development is central to how they approach learning, interact within the university community, and consider new opportunities. When universities prioritise it, they create the conditions for real trust, dialogue, and growth. We need to start asking deeper questions – how many students succeed in becoming fuller versions of themselves? And more importantly, who are they encouraged to become?