‘You lose your childhood’: The hidden burden carried by 40,000 young WA carers

Qalandari took on the role after her family migrated to Western Australia as refugees. She learned English at school, but no other family member spoke the language. Her mother had several health conditions that required frequent doctors visits, and her siblings needed help at school. Mostly, she has looked after her brother, now 18, who lives with a congenital visual impairment.

“I go to all the appointments: NDIS, Centrelink, schools, doctors, I basically take care of all of that,” she said.

She completed a degree in biomedical sciences in 2022 and is now studying a Bachelor of Psychology part-time, but her main goal has always been to become a doctor. Getting into medical school, she said, is difficult when competing against applicants without her responsibilities.

“The issues that you have, other people don’t have, and you’re competing on the same level: it has been very difficult for me to pursue my education,” she said.

Qalandari said she has been advocating for a pathway for carers and for people with disability applying to study medicine, so they can compete on an equal platform with other applicants. Her advocacy with politicians has had little success.

“I’m really devastated about that because it’s very unfair that we have to choose between our career and care responsibilities, it shouldn’t be that way. We should be able to be caring for our loved ones as well as trying to pursue our dreams,” she said.

She also struggled as a young person to explain her life to others her age. “I couldn’t explain to them that I do want to join you guys, but I have responsibilities that I have to go home to,” she said.

Analysis

Why This Matters

Caring from childhood can shape a young person’s education and career for years, and WA has tens of thousands of young people in this position.
Qalandari’s experience raises the question of whether universities and governments account for caring duties when young people compete for highly selective courses such as medicine.
Her account indicates that existing advocacy has not yet produced the pathway she is seeking, leaving young carers to resolve the conflict on their own.

Background

Young carers are children and young people who provide unpaid care for family members with disability, illness or other needs. In Australia the caring role can include practical help at home, coordinating appointments with services such as the NDIS and Centrelink, and helping family members navigate school, health and government systems.

Entry to competitive university courses such as medicine is based on academic achievement and admission tests, which take no account of responsibilities outside study. Qalandari’s story adds a further layer: her family arrived as refugees and she was the only one who learned English at school.

Key Perspectives

Sara Qalandari: Young carers should not have to choose between caring for loved ones and pursuing their dreams. She wants a designated pathway for carers and people with disability applying to study medicine, so they can compete on an equal platform.

Universities and medical schools: Selective courses are built around standard competitive entry. Any alternative pathway would need to be designed and applied consistently, and none has been announced.

Critics and skeptics: Questions of fairness would arise over how a carer pathway defines eligibility, how care experience would be weighed against academic merit, and how to ensure the pathway is not open to abuse.

What to Watch

Whether any WA university or government body responds to calls for a carer pathway into medicine.
Qalandari’s own progress as she continues to apply for medical school while studying part-time.
Whether the broader needs of young carers gain attention in Western Australia’s policy debate.

Analysis

Why This Matters

Background

Key Perspectives

What to Watch

Sources