For millions of displaced individuals, education serves as an important pathway to rebuilding lives. Fleeing conflict and persecution means that people with displacement experiences face the formidable task of navigating new linguistic and socio-economic realities, usually without support networks and with limited financial resources, heightened health risks, and ongoing trauma. Amid such precarity, access to quality education can not only enhance employability and offer a means of securing financial stability, but it can also promote a sense of purpose, belonging, and hope.

Yet, research shows that lack of access to language(s) of instruction continues to pose a significant hurdle to Australian higher education for individuals with forced migration backgrounds (Burke, 2022). While research draws attention to the need for higher education providers to offer scholarships, particularly for people with asylum seeker backgrounds, such supports —though crucial to participation—often lack provisions for assistance to meet language-related entry requirements. 

Here, we report on research conducted with people who have been displaced by war in Ukraine and resettled in Australia, and the educators journeying alongside them. Drawing on foundational concepts of hybridity of funds of knowledge (Gonzalez, 2005), we explore participants’ experiences utilizing informal and self-directed resources to support language learning in displacement. We conclude with recommendations for offering greater language-related supports that are responsive to the unique material conditions and sociolinguistic contexts of learners with displacement experiences as they seek to participate in higher education in Australia.