From Angkor to Aotearoa: A Study of How Khmer Refugee-background People’s Experiences During Secondary Education Influenced Their Post-Secondary Outcomes

Abstract

This qualitative study examines how experiences during secondary school shaped post-secondary outcomes for Khmer (Indigenous Cambodian) refugee-background people in Aotearoa New Zealand. Refugee-background enrolments in New Zealand schools continue to rise, yet research often ends at the completion of compulsory schooling, leaving limited knowledge about how experiences during this formative time influence later pathways. This study addresses that gap by focusing on four Khmer participants who resettled in Aotearoa as children or young people in the 1980s.

Semi-structured interviews were analysed using Moustakas’ phenomenological analysis method, guided by van Manen’s four lived existentials and Ungar’s socioecological theory of resilience. Findings show that both schooling and out-of-school experiences shaped post-secondary lives through an ongoing process of resilience-building. Resilience was influenced by access to supportive systems such as family, peers, teachers, community organisations, and the Mangere Refugee Resettlement Centre. These supports enabled participants to navigate challenge, rebuild a sense of normalcy, and pursue future goals in ways that were culturally meaningful.

Across the lived existentials, resilience took different forms: • Lived Body: memories carried in the body through loss, disruption, and change became a source of adaptation. • Lived Space: school and home environments were places of belonging and displacement, shaping identity across Cambodia and Aotearoa. • Lived Time: intergenerational stories and past experiences informed future aspirations. • Lived Relationality: relationships with family, peers, teachers, and community networks created opportunities for belonging and direction.

The study suggests that schools are not only educational spaces but also social and relational spaces where identity, agency, and belonging develop. Access to culturally and emotionally responsive support systems can influence the capacity of refugee-background students to thrive beyond secondary school. These findings offer insight for educators and policy makers seeking to strengthen transitions into further education, training, and employment for refugee-background students in Aotearoa New Zealand.