Randomised Controlled Trials in Student Equity: Potentials, Pitfalls, and Practical Realities in Australian Universities

Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) are increasingly promoted for evaluating publicly funded initiatives, including government-funded student equity programs in higher education. Yet their application in university settings remains uneven and contested. This article critically examines the role of RCTs in evaluating student equity initiatives in Australian universities. Drawing on a review of the literature, two applied RCT case examples, and analysis of the institutional realities of Australian higher education, it identifies recurring methodological tensions that arise when experimental designs are applied to complex, justice-oriented equity interventions. These tensions include weak alignment between problem diagnosis and intervention logic, homogenisation of heterogeneous equity cohorts, reliance on simplified behavioural proxies, delivery and engagement constraints, and broader institutional barriers to experimentation across universities. The article argues that many apparent weaknesses in RCT design reflect deeper tensions between experimental assumptions and the relational, adaptive, and context-dependent nature of equity practice, rather than simply poor implementation. It reframes RCTs not as a default standard for equity evaluation, but as one tool within a plural evaluation ecosystem, to be used selectively and ethically in alignment with equity purpose, institutional capacity, and clearly specified causal questions.