"Education Will Get You to the Station": Marginalized Students' Experiences and Perceptions of Merit in Accessing University‪.‬

This article explores how four minority students in a university access program reconciled their presence on merit. They shared their experiences over two years through their application statements, life history interviews, weekly group sessions, and personal journal entries. Consistent with the discourse of merit, participants believed that by exercising agency and taking responsibility for their schooling, education will work to their benefit. They reconceptualized the access program as a scholarship program and affirmed pride in being university students, with a sense of obligation to their immigrant parents and a desire to give back to their communities. Key words: immigrant youth, access programs, racism, parental expectations