The possibility of gaining the independent rate of Austudy after working for 18 months does not apply to a young person working on the family farm. There are also so few jobs for young people in the country that it is difficult to satisfy the conditions for independence under Austudy. It was suggested that universities could set aside a number of places for country students. The young children at primary school do not have many role models of older people who are tertiary educated with attractive jobs. This means they are not motivated.
School buses are rare.
There is no Port Lincoln High School bus, which means the students cannot be taken to Adelaide by bus and airfares are too expensive. This limits children's horizons. A 'buddy system' has been suggested, matching a city student with a Eyre Peninsula student to widen the students' expectations for themselves. There are special barriers to accessing distance or higher education for some country students. For a kid from a country town who hasn't been in a tertiary environment, it's a real tough ask to do distance education which needs discipline.