Projects per year
Personal profile
Research interests
Dr. Cathy Waite is a Research Fellow in the Centre for Youth Policy and Education Practice.
Cathy’s scholarly work is concerned with highlighting the inequalities faced by young people in contemporary Australia and providing a voice for those on the margins. As a researcher, Cathy seeks to contribute to a body of knowledge that helps to improve participation in, and access to, education by articulating barriers and focusing on opportunities for change. In particular, she is interested in young people in Australia’s rural and regional areas and their subjective experiences of space and place through the lens of digital media.
Cathy’s current work in the Centre for Youth Policy and Education Practice seeks to change the conversation about young people in Australia within the current Covid-recovery landscape. Her work in the Centre aims to inform policy and educational interventions designed to mitigate youth disadvantage, while ultimately helping to improve youth outcomes now and into the future.
Biography
Cathy completed her PhD in Youth Studies and Sociology in the School of Social Sciences, Monash University. Her doctoral research investigated the place-making practices of young people from different backgrounds in regional Australia, and highlighted the contradictory role that digital technologies played in young peoples’ spatial experiences.
She has previously worked as a Research Consultant at the Social Research Centre (owned by the Australian National University) where she was project manager on multiple program evaluations. These projects were commissioned by government to ascertain the effectiveness of a range of social interventions, ranging from education programs to employment initiatives, and projects focused on supporting vulnerable youth and child care subsidy recipients.
Cathy is also a committed and innovative educator, having taught across a range of areas within the field of Sociology. Cathy has lectured in the areas of Family studies, Youth studies and first year sociology, and tutored in the areas of ethnicity and identity, popular culture, digital life, environment and society, gender and sexuality, globalization and social theory.
Supervision interests
- Young people and youth sociology
- Rural and regional experience
- Space and place as an analytical lens
- Digital life and social media analyses
- Youth transitions
- Education and youth policy interventions
- Qualitative methods
Education/Academic qualification
Sociology , PhD, MONASH UNIVERSITY
3 Mar 2014 → 31 Jan 2018
Award Date: 31 Jan 2018
Sociology , Master of Philosophy, University of Melbourne
1 Jun 2010 → 29 Nov 2013
Award Date: 29 Nov 2013
Sociology and Anthropology, Bachelor or Arts(Hons), Australian National University
1 Feb 2003 → 31 Oct 2006
Award Date: 31 Oct 2006
Research area keywords
- Youth studies
- Digital culture
- Place-making
- Space and place
- Rural issues
- Policy studies in education/training and work
- Youth transitions
- Youth and media
- Qualitative Methods
- Rural and Regional Education
- Social Media
- Digital education
- Young People
- Evaluation
- Evaluation methodology
Network
Projects
- 1 Finished
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Barriers and drivers into young people aged 15-24 years utilising the National Careers Institute’s School Leavers Information Service
Roberts, S., Lyall, B., Smith, J., Robards, B., Trott, V., Wright, B., Waite, C. & Smith, J.
30/06/21 → 31/10/21
Project: Research
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In their own words: 41 stories of young people’s digital citizenship
Black, R., Walsh, L., Waite, C., Collin, P., Third, A. & Idriss, S., 2022, (Accepted/In press) In: Learning, Media and Technology. 13 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review
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Cypep Policy Bite 1: Change Five Things; Young People Discuss What Needs to Change in The Transition from School
Cutler, B., Leap, A., Lin, Y., Mikola, M., Waite, C., Walsh, L., Walters, R., Yin, M. & Zheng, C. C., Dec 2021, 8 p. Melbourne VIC Australia : Monash University.Research output: Other contribution › Other
Open AccessFile -
The 2021 Australian Youth Barometer: Understanding Young People in Australia Today
Walsh, L., Waite, C., Magyar, B., Gallo Cordoba, B., Mikola, M. & Cutler, B., Nov 2021, 1st ed. Melbourne VIC Australia: Monash University. 69 p.Research output: Book/Report › Other Report › Research
Open AccessFile -
Understanding the lived experiences of housing and transport stress in the “affordable” outer ring: a case study of Melbourne, Australia
Smith, J., Waite, C., Lohm, D., Saberi, M. & Arunachalam, D., 2021, In: Urban Policy and Research. 39, 2, p. 191-207 17 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review
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Making place with mobile media: young people’s blurred place-making in regional Australia
Waite, C., Jan 2020, In: Mobile Media & Communication. 8, 1, p. 124-141 18 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review
6 Citations (Scopus)
Prizes
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Dean’s Sessional Commendation for Outstanding Contribution
Waite, Cathy (Recipient), 4 May 2018
Prize: Prize (including medals and awards)
Press / Media
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‘We get the raw deal out of almost everything’: A quarter of young Australians are pessimistic about having kids
Lucas Walsh, Masha Mikola, Beatriz Gallo Cordoba, Blake Cutler & Cathy Waite
19/05/22
1 Media contribution
Press/Media: Article/Feature
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‘We get the raw deal out of almost everything’: a quarter of young Australians are pessimistic about having kids
Lucas Walsh, Masha Mikola, Beatriz Gallo Cordoba, Cathy Waite & Blake Cutler
21/02/22
1 Media contribution
Press/Media: Article/Feature
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Tax cuts for the young miss a key point: climate change
6/02/22
1 Media contribution
Press/Media: Article/Feature
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Lack of information strangles students’ career choices
1/02/22
1 Media contribution
Press/Media: Article/Feature
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Taking the temperature of Australian youth amid the pandemic
Lucas Walsh, Cathy Waite, Bertalan Magyar, Beatriz Gallo Cordoba, Masha Mikola & Blake Cutler
24/11/21
1 Media contribution
Press/Media: Article/Feature