The second theme that arose from the focus group data was having the
opportunity to attend university as a mechanism of escaping. This escaping
was both physical as well as psychological. Physical, in that some
participants grew up in a small town and they saw university as an
opportunity to escape their town and broaden their horizon. Psychologically,
it was linked to having a different life than their parents. Wanting something
more, a sense of greater financial security on one side but also a better
quality of life, being able to do something they really wanted to do in
contrast to seeing parents having to work in a job they may not particularly
like: