Dr. Seth Brown
Details
Department: School of Education
Campus: Bundoora West Australia
seth.brown@rmit.edu.au
ORCID: 0000-0002-2750-2284
Open to
- Masters Research or PhD student supervision
About
Dr Seth Brown is a Senior Lecturer in Education and Youth Studies at RMIT University, where he teaches and researches education, health and physical education, vocational education, regenerative futures and youth transitions. He is Chair of the College of Design and Social Context Human Ethics Research Committee, Head of UNESCO UNEVOC@RMIT University and Vice President of the Young People’s Sustainable Futures Lab.
Over the past two decades, Seth’s research has examined the sociocultural dimensions of education, youth development and transitions from school to work or further study. His work explores how social change, place, identity, health, wellbeing, disability, gender, social class and cultural expectations shape young people’s educational experiences, aspirations and opportunities.
A central concern is the experience of young people marginalised or disengaged from mainstream education, training and employment. Seth has investigated wellbeing, resilience, belonging, identity and engagement, including the effects of financial hardship, mental health challenges, neurodiversity, climate change, technological transformation and economic uncertainty. His recent research considers how young people understand their futures in times of crisis and how their voices can inform inclusive policy and practice.
Seth’s research connects education with vocational pathways and decent work. Through partnerships with schools, government departments, local learning and employment networks, industry and community organisations, he has examined traineeships, vocational education, school-to-work transitions and the social, cultural and economic value of learning. His community-based micro-credentials project for neurodiverse young people demonstrated how co-design can recognise capabilities, strengthen confidence and improve participation. It also showed how place-based partnerships can create more inclusive pathways into learning, employment and community participation.
His research is applied, collaborative and place-based, with a strong emphasis on translating scholarship into community and policy impact. Seth has produced more than 50 peer-reviewed articles, books, book chapters, reports and conference presentations, and secured more than $370,000 in external and internal research funding. His work aligns with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, particularly quality education, gender equality, and decent work and economic growth, as well as RMIT’s commitment to serving communities and advancing sustainability.
Seth’s research on vocational education, traineeships and school-to-work transitions has informed policy and practice at local, state and national levels. Findings have been shared with government and industry stakeholders, including the Victorian Department of Education and the Victorian Department of Jobs, Skills, Industry and Regions. This work has contributed to policy and classroom practice, benefiting schools, teachers and students.
His recent books demonstrate a coherent research programme focused on education, youth transitions, social inequality and sustainable futures. Belonging, Identity, Time and Young People’s Engagement in the Middle Years of School examines how relationships, institutions, place and experiences of time shape educational engagement. Informal Workers and a Political Economy of Lifelong Learning extends this focus to marginalised workers, challenging assumptions that learning and employment pathways are linear, secure or equally accessible.
Covid-19 and the (Broken) Promise of Education for Sustainable Development: A Case Study from Postcolonial Pakistan, co-authored with PhD students from Pakistan, extends Seth’s research into global education, sustainability and postcolonial contexts. The book examines how the COVID-19 pandemic exposed inequalities in education and challenged the promise that education for sustainable development can be delivered equitably without addressing structural disadvantage. It also demonstrates Seth’s commitment to collaborative research training and developing scholarly partnerships with international HDR candidates.
Together, Seth’s projects and publications amplify marginalised voices, connect research with practice and support more equitable, inclusive and sustainable educational and vocational futures.
Research fields
- 3901 Curriculum and pedagogy
- 3902 Education policy, sociology and philosophy
- 3903 Education systems
- 3904 Specialist studies in education
- 3999 Other Education
UN sustainable development goals
- 4 Quality Education
- 5 Gender Equality
- 8 Decent Work and Economic Growth
- 11 Sustainable Cities and Communities
- 13 Climate Action
- 17 Partnerships for the Goals
Supervisor projects
- Engaging Humanities and Social Science Students in Interdisciplinary Team Projects: Influences on Career Identity Narratives
- 17 Jun 2025
- Leading Through Crisis: Leaders in Omani Higher Education During COVID-19
- 13 Dec 2024
- Pursuing Sustainable Futures in Vocational Textile Design Education
- 29 Mar 2023
- Higher Education Leadership and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals in Postcolonial Cambodia
- 29 Jun 2022
- Educational Leadership and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals in Post-Colonial Pakistan
- 29 Nov 2021
- The Cultural Politics of Curriculum in Pakistan: The Challenges for Pluralism, Inclusion and the UN SDGs in a Post-colonial Context
- 29 Nov 2021
- Neoliberal Capitalism and the Government of Labour Market Skills: A Genealogy of Australia’s Foundation Skills Apparatus
- 29 Nov 2021
- Higher education and human capital in Vietnam: Modernity and Creativity
- 20 Sep 2021
- The Problem of Youth Unemployment in a De-Industrialising City: A Genealogy of Employability Skills, Innovation and Enterprise
- 5 Mar 2019
- Khawaja Sara and Hijra: Gender and Sexual Identity Formation in Postcolonial Islamic Pakistan
- 2 Jan 2019
Teaching interests
Dr Seth Brown’s HDR supervision demonstrates a sustained and internationally oriented contribution to research training across education, youth studies, vocational education, higher education, leadership, curriculum, gender and sustainable development. His supervision portfolio reflects a coherent research agenda concerned with how education systems, labour markets and social institutions shape people’s identities, opportunities, capabilities and futures. It also demonstrates his capacity to support interdisciplinary research addressing complex social, cultural, economic and environmental challenges.
Seth’s HDR supervision encompasses ten research-based degree projects reported between 2019 and 2025. These projects engage with diverse contexts, including Australia, Vietnam, Oman, Cambodia and Pakistan. This international breadth is complemented by a strong focus on postcolonial and culturally specific contexts, enabling candidates to investigate how global education agendas and policy frameworks are experienced and negotiated in different societies.
A significant theme in Seth’s supervision is the relationship between education and sustainable development. Projects on Pursuing Sustainable Futures in Vocational Textile Design Education, Higher Education Leadership and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals in Postcolonial Cambodia, The Cultural Politics of Curriculum in Pakistan: The Challenges for Pluralism, Inclusion and the UN SDGs in a Post-colonial Context, and Educational Leadership and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals in Post-Colonial Pakistan examine how educational institutions and leaders respond to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. These projects extend Seth’s expertise in vocational education, sustainability, curriculum and educational leadership, while supporting research that connects international policy aspirations with local educational practice.
Seth’s supervision also addresses higher education transformation and the changing purposes of education. Higher Education and Human Capital in Vietnam: Modernity and Creativity investigates the relationship between higher education, human capital, modernity and creativity. Leading Through Crisis: Leaders in Omani Higher Education During COVID-19 examines educational leadership during a period of profound institutional and social disruption. Together, these projects reflect Seth’s interest in how higher education systems respond to technological, economic and global change, and how leaders navigate uncertainty while shaping institutional futures.
Another important area is the relationship between education, labour markets and employability. Neoliberal Capitalism and the Government of Labour Market Skills: A Genealogy of Australia’s Foundation Skills Apparatus critically examines the historical and political formation of skills policy in Australia. This project aligns closely with Seth’s research on vocational education, lifelong learning, labour market skills and the social expectations placed on individuals to become employable and adaptable.
Similarly, The Problem of Youth Unemployment in a De-Industrialising City: A Genealogy of Employability Skills, Innovation and Enterprise connects directly with Seth’s longstanding research on young people’s transitions from school to work. It explores how youth unemployment is understood and governed through concepts such as employability, innovation and enterprise, particularly within changing regional and economic contexts. The project complements Seth’s broader research on youth aspirations, disengagement, vocational pathways and decent work.
Seth’s supervision portfolio also demonstrates a commitment to inclusion, identity and social justice. Khawaja Sara and Hijra: Gender and Sexual Identity Formation in Postcolonial Islamic Pakistan examines gender and sexual identity formation within a specific postcolonial and cultural context. This work connects with Seth’s interest in the intersections of gender, identity, culture, social norms and educational opportunity, while extending his supervisory contribution into questions of diversity and representation.
His most recent project, Engaging Humanities and Social Science Students in Interdisciplinary Team Projects: Influences on Career Identity Narratives, further develops his interest in student engagement, interdisciplinary learning and transitions into employment. It considers how collaborative educational experiences influence students’ understandings of their capabilities, professional identities and future careers.
Overall, Seth’s HDR supervision is characterised by intellectual breadth, international engagement and a consistent commitment to critical, socially relevant research. His projects support candidates to investigate education and work as sites shaped by power, culture, policy and social change. Through this work, he contributes to research capacity, interdisciplinary knowledge production and the development of more inclusive, sustainable and equitable educational futures.
Research interests
Dr Seth Brown’s research interests are situated at the intersection of education, youth studies, vocational education, sociology and regenerative futures. Across more than two decades, his work has examined how social, cultural, economic and environmental change shapes people’s educational experiences, identities, aspirations and transitions into employment or further study. His research is particularly concerned with the ways institutions—including schools, universities, families, workplaces, communities and governments—create or constrain opportunities for young people and other marginalised groups.
A central focus of Seth’s work is young people’s engagement with education and their transitions from school to work or further study. He investigates how belonging, identity, place, time, relationships and institutional expectations influence participation and educational outcomes, particularly during the middle years of schooling. His research challenges the assumption that engagement is simply an individual attribute, arguing instead that it is produced through social and cultural relationships and the conditions in which young people live and learn. This focus has informed his work with young people who are disengaged from mainstream education, training and employment pathways.
Seth is also interested in youth wellbeing, resilience and identity formation. His research explores how mental health, disability, neurodiversity, gender, sexuality, social class, race and cultural expectations shape young people’s experiences and future possibilities. He is particularly attentive to the voices of young people whose perspectives are often excluded from policy and public debate. His research seeks to understand how young people interpret their circumstances, articulate their aspirations and participate in decisions affecting their futures.
Another significant area of interest is vocational education and training, lifelong learning and decent work. Seth examines how education and labour market systems govern people’s capabilities, employability and transitions into work. His research questions linear assumptions about education, skills and employment, recognising that pathways are often fragmented, insecure and shaped by structural inequalities. He has explored traineeships, informal work, employability, enterprise, vocational pathways and the social, cultural and economic value of learning. This work is connected to broader questions about how policy and institutions can support more inclusive and meaningful opportunities for education and employment.
Seth’s research increasingly addresses sustainability, climate change and regenerative futures. He is interested in how young people imagine and negotiate futures in the context of the Anthropocene, climate crisis, technological transformation, economic uncertainty and social disruption. His work examines how education can support critical thinking, participation and collective action, while also questioning whether existing education systems are adequately preparing learners for uncertain and rapidly changing futures. He is particularly interested in approaches that position young people as active participants and knowledge producers rather than passive recipients of policy or education.
Technology and artificial intelligence represent a growing dimension of Seth’s research. Through the NEW Futures project, he explores how students can use AI tools to critically consider future education and employment pathways. The project uses a game-based digital platform set in a climate-affected Ho Chi Minh City in 2030. It supports students to develop confidence with AI, understand its benefits and limitations, examine ethical questions and consider how climate change may affect future occupations. This work extends Seth’s broader interest in the relationship between technology, learning, creativity and sustainable futures.
Seth also maintains a strong interest in global, postcolonial and comparative education. His research and HDR supervision examine education systems and leadership in contexts including Pakistan, Vietnam, Cambodia and Oman. These projects explore how global agendas, including the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, are interpreted in diverse cultural and political settings. They also consider the tensions between universal policy promises and local experiences of inequality, inclusion and educational change.
Across these interests, Seth’s research is collaborative, applied and place-based. He works with schools, governments, community organisations, industry, vocational education providers and young people to translate research into policy and practice. His overarching goal is to contribute to more inclusive, equitable and sustainable educational and vocational futures.
