This thesis provides a case study on Pacific Peoples’ engagement with policy processes, specifically in the development of the New Zealand Tertiary Education Strategies between 2002-2020. In the 2002 Tertiary Education Strategy, Pacific Peoples were prioritised. However, over the course of nearly 20 years, which included five strategies and directives under two governments, this community was further marginalised and has now been removed as a priority within the Tertiary Strategies. The shifts within this policy have left this community without clarity, positioning and direction as their place diminished within each strategy. Yet, research and statistics in tertiary education continue to reveal the growing gap towards achieving parity.