Structured around knowledge and technology, contemporary societies demand constant adaptation through lifelong learning (LLL). However, Portugal exhibits persistent levels of underqualification, a phenomenon marked by the “Matthew effect”, where low initial schooling tends to inhibit a return to formal education. This paper analyses the challenges inherent in being “low-educated”, exploring the subjective and structural causes of the lack of return to the school system. Adopting a qualitative approach based on 21 biographical interviews, the research identifies a profound reflexive gap: although education is highly valued as a resource for the success of descendants, it is often perceived as redundant or unattainable for one’s own life course. The findings reveal multidimensional barriers, such as learning scars resulting from past school failure, and feelings of stigma and shame, encapsulated in the metaphor “rente ao chão” (close to the ground). These factors are further compounded by an accommodation to one’s low educational status, scepticism, and a perceived laxity regarding the standards of current adult education and training provisions. The analysis culminates in the presentation of an original typology categorising the reasons for non-participation: "It’s no longer for me" (older adults), "It’s not for me, it’s for others" (working-age adults), and "I know it’s necessary, but not now" (young adults). It concludes that the absence of return results from a complex web of situational, institutional, and subjective obstacles, requiring public policies that recognise the biographical diversity of these adults and break the mechanisms of social reproduction.

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• Sociology - Social Sciences