Returning to Learn

The main purpose of this study is to analyse the changes of barriers and opportunities on adult woman returnees when they return to learn in HE in the UK and Taiwan. The study demonstrates the ways in which globalisation as a driving force that has affected on women's lives regardless age cohorts. Then it is argued that women's lives from both countires are convergent due to the effect of globalisation. The study focuses on the changes of social structure in higher education expansion, the changes of family ideology and gender inequality. The theoretical framework draws upon the comparison in which women's lives are investigated between the countries and across each nation. The results show cultural resistance is evident among women in Taiwan where women's lives are affected by Confucian cultures and family ideology despite the global trends from the west country.