NextNormal - WeStudy@Home Laura Eigbrecht, Patricia Bonaudo, Ulf-Daniel Ehlers

Since we started our podcast series in 2020, we've talked to students and student representatives from all over Europe about the present and future of higher education. With this final episode of “NextNormal – WeStudy@Home”, we want to look back and forward, to take stock of the past years, but also to formulate a vision for future higher education. For this, we have talked to Lilith Diringer and Paul Klär from Germany who both are and have been engaged in several student initiatives such as the DigitalChangeMaker initiative and fzs (freier zusammenschluss von student*innenschaften). While discussing the potentials and take-aways from digital teaching and learning approaches, we also come back to what higher education and learning are all about and ask: is if there actually still such a thing as "normal" higher education?

What is the “NextNormal” of European student life? There will be a time after the Corona shutdown, and we want to discuss what it should look like. How can we learn from the digital turn in order to create a better future for higher education? In our podcast, we are talking to students and student unions from all over Europe about the “NextNormal” – the future of higher education beyond Corona. Each episode is dedicated to one European country. “NextNormal – WeStudy@Home” is a podcast produced by the NextEducation working group at DHBW Karlsruhe and strongly supported by ESU. next-normal.eu

Topics discussed

00:26 - Introduction

04:51 - Social presence in online courses - has it worked?

07:37 - The Corona student generation - what is it like?

15:17 - inequality of studying during and after the shutdown

20:19 - positive experiences

28:02 - Where should we not go back to normal?

38:10 - Has the student voice been heard - and how can it be heard in the future?

42:38 - mental health - consequences of the pandemic

50:45 - wishes for the university of the future

Since the first episode of "NextNormal", it has become very clear that student wellbeing and mental health are subjects that matter and that should be talked about - especially during this time of uncertainty, isolation and anxiety. Nina Ruijfrok and Antonia Vegt are both studying in The Netherlands and working at ISO, The Dutch National Students' Association - and they proposed to focus on mental health in this "NextNormal" episode, especially from a perspective of international students. What makes students and international students especially vulnerable when it comes to mental wellbeing, why is it so difficult to change the complex situation for the better - and, most importantly - how can we still try? Listen to Nina, Antonia and Laura discuss a more caring future of higher education in Europe.

What is the “NextNormal” of European student life? There will be a time after the Corona shutdown, and we want to discuss what it should look like. How can we learn from the digital turn in order to create a better future for higher education? In our podcast, we are talking to students and student unions from all over Europe about the “NextNormal” – the future of higher education beyond Corona. Each episode is dedicated to one European country. “NextNormal – WeStudy@Home” is a podcast produced by the NextEducation working group at DHBW Karlsruhe and strongly supported by ESU. next-normal.eu

Topics discussed

0:28 - Introduction

3:23 - the student situation in the last months

4:14 - the Covid situation in the Netherlands in the past months and now

7:29 - biggest challenges and learnings

9:39 - What is mental health about and what's the public narrative?

14:14 - Are (international) students especially vulnerable?

16:30 - impact of the Dutch educational and health system

20:41 - (mental) health on a European level and challenges for international students

25:06 - making higher education more inclusive

27:39 - the role of student organisations and the Caring Universities

30:30 - What could universities and teachers do?

33:39 - envisioning future higher education

One year of "NextNormal - WeStudy@Home" - many stories and ideas have been shared. For our twelfth episode, we've talked to Damir Solak, Jan Bavlovič and Lukáš Lang from Czech Republic, facilitated by SKRVS, the Student Chamber of the Council of HEIs in Czech Republic. Each one of them has studied under very different circumstances in the last year and experienced different ways of higher education teaching and learning which we want to discuss: from a teaching student, an Erasmus student and a PhD student working in health emergency services point of view. Together, we talk about different ways of involving students in higher education - and how to do even better in the future.

What is the “NextNormal” of European student life? There will be a time after the Corona shutdown, and we want to discuss what it should look like. How can we learn from the digital turn in order to create a better future for higher education? In our podcast, we are talking to students and student unions from all over Europe about the “NextNormal” – the future of higher education beyond Corona. Each episode is dedicated to one European country. “NextNormal – WeStudy@Home” is a podcast produced by the NextEducation working group at DHBW Karlsruhe and strongly supported by ESU. next-normal.eu

Topics discussed


0:32 - Introduction
3:29 - the student situation in the last months
5:22 - What does it mean to study?
6:44 - Does studying work right now?
8:58 - Are you being as well prepared as before?
10:25 - Going back to university - how to make sure nobody is left behind?
11:20 - How can students be involved in teaching and learning?
15:20 - mental health
16:22 - Erasmus and emergency service during the shutdown
18:56 - learnings and challenges for the future
20:23 - the university of the future

With the eleventh episode of "NextNormal - WeStudy@Home", we've set a strong thematic focus to our conversation with Ángel Canal Alonso and Francesc Almentros Viladerrams from CREUP, the Public Universities' Students Union in Spain. In addition to insights into their Corona study experience, they provide us with some expertise on the subject of internationalisation and mobility. One might think that there hasn't been much international exchange and mobility happening in the last year - but there has! It just looks different than the classical Erasmus semesters we know best! Angel and Francesc share their mobility concepts for the future in order to create an even better higher education experience for all students.

What is the “NextNormal” of European student life? There will be a time after the Corona shutdown, and we want to discuss what it should look like. How can we learn from the digital turn in order to create a better future for higher education? In our podcast, we are talking to students and student unions from all over Europe about the “NextNormal” – the future of higher education beyond Corona. Each episode is dedicated to one European country. “NextNormal – WeStudy@Home” is a podcast produced by the NextEducation working group at DHBW Karlsruhe and strongly supported by ESU. next-normal.eu

For the tenth episode of "NextNormal - WeStudy@Home", we talked to Pegi Pavletić and Karla Hrsak from Croatia. They tell us about the crucial role of support in hard times - Croatia not only being affected by Corona but also hit by earthquakes - and how universities must switch from efficient teaching to good quality teaching. This means involving students in the process of creating a good, inclusive, student-centered study environment - and Pegi and Karla have some ideas on this to share!

What is the “NextNormal” of European student life? There will be a time after the Corona shutdown, and we want to discuss what it should look like. How can we learn from the digital turn in order to create a better future for higher education? In our podcast, we are talking to students and student unions from all over Europe about the “NextNormal” – the future of higher education beyond Corona. Each episode is dedicated to one European country. “NextNormal –  WeStudy@Home” is a podcast produced by the NextEducation working group at DHBW Karlsruhe and strongly supported by ESU. next-normal.eu

This ninth episode of "NextNormal - WeStudy@Home" is the first one in 2021, a new year full of question marks, hopes and optimism, not only when it comes to higher education. Facilitated by ESU and ÖH, we had the opportunity to talk to Asja Ahmetovic and Eileen Robiati from Austria. They tell us about jam-packed working and study days, when it is time for teachers to finish early, how to make friends online and how reducing things to the essential can sometimes be just more than enough.  

What is the “NextNormal” of European student life? There will be a time after the Corona shutdown, and we want to discuss what it should look like. How can we learn from the digital turn in order to create a better future for higher education? In our podcast, we are talking to students and student unions from all over Europe about the “NextNormal” – the future of higher education beyond Corona. Each episode is dedicated to one European country. “NextNormal –  WeStudy@Home” is a podcast produced by the NextEducation working group at DHBW Karlsruhe and strongly supported by ESU. next-normal.eu