Authors: Lucas Walsh, Beatriz Gallo Cordoba, Blake Cutler, Thuc Bao Huynh, Zihong Deng

The Australian Youth Barometer gauges the pressures currently experienced by young Australians.

For this third edition of the Australian Youth Barometer, we surveyed over 500 young Australians aged 18 to 24 and undertook 30 in-depth interviews to examine the interconnected dimensions of young people’s lives, including the economy, employment, education, health and wellbeing, relationships, and young people’s civic participation in society, including their experiences of belonging and exclusion.

The findings reflect intersecting challenges that collectively sound a clarion call to us to respond not only to the needs of disadvantaged young people but also to the possibility that being young could itself be a form of disadvantage.
(Lucas Walsh, Director, CYPEP)

Yet, despite these multiplying pressures, young people acknowledge that solutions require multi-sector cooperation and they are prepared to step up.

This year’s Barometer highlights how we are actively engaged with our communities, and we are interested in working together to address the challenges that society is facing.
(CYPEP Youth Reference Group)

Download the report: The 2023 Australian Youth Barometer: Understanding young people in Australia today

The 2023 Australian Youth Barometer sheds light on the evolving challenges faced by young Australians. Amid ongoing pandemic concerns, emerging issues include the rise of the gig economy, mental health struggles and the harsh reality of unaffordable housing.

This year, the methodology closely mirrors that of 2022, revealing a consistent trend in precarious youth labour markets. The report also underscores alarming trends in school refusal, incomplete education, and post-school declines in further education and training, emphasising the enduring significance of education for young people's futures.

It also highlights the urgent need for amplifying youth voices, understanding evolving civic participation, and addressing housing insecurity, while acknowledging the ambivalence of young people towards social media's potential for social change. The findings provide a vital snapshot of the challenges and opportunities young Australians navigate in this ever-changing world.

Some key findings of the 2023 Australian Youth Barometer:

• Although 90% of young Australians experienced difficulties in the past year, 52% thought that it is likely or extremely likely that they will achieve financial security in the future.
• 83% of young people are doing something extra with the goal of improving their chances of getting a job.
• 50% of young Australians reported participating in the gig economy at some point in the last 12 months. This was more common among young First Nations peoples and those with physical disabilities or other conditions than those without disabilities.
• 71% have participated in some form of informal online learning in their daily lives and work.
• 26% of young Australians rated their mental health as poor or very poor and 36% rated it as good or excellent.
• The top three areas nominated by young Australians for immediate action included housing (70% of respondents), employment opportunities for young people (51%) and climate change (42%).