Early Marriages and Higher Education: Social Norms Limiting Women’s Academic Participation in Khyber Paktunkhwa: A case study of District Buner

Abstract

This study examines the barrier that limit female students access to higher education in District Buner, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Employing a mixed-method design, the research combined a quantitative survey  analyzing using SPSS with qualitative interviews  examined through thematic analysis. Quantitative findings show societal expectations, financial constraints are the most critical barriers followed by family restriction, inadequate transport and limited access to resources and nearly half of the respondents expressed dissatisfaction with local higher education quality. Thematic analysis identified six themes: Societal and cultural norms, financial constraints, transport and limited access to resources, family restrictions and gender roles, discrimination in institution and Student’s recommendation. The study concludes that, although women in Buner view higher as essential for empowerment and social mobility, their aspiration are constrained by interconnected cultural economic and institutional barriers.it recommends targeted policy reforms, infrastructural upgrades and community-based awareness to promote gender equality in higher education.