Student Representatives’ Perceived Effectiveness of their Engagement in European University Alliances’ Governance Structures

Abstract

One of the European Commission’s main recent policies for intensifying higher education integration is the European Universities Initiative, aiming at establishing transnational higher education alliances for cooperation in research and teaching. A central determinant for the consortia’s sustainable success is the university communities’ involvement in steering the process within its governance structures – besides academic and administrative staff, this also includes students. This thesis explores student representatives’ perceptions of their engagement’s effectiveness in alliance governance, operationalized by four dimensions, namely personal, professional, democratic and organizational benefits. The results of a survey conducted with 67 students from 24 university alliances demonstrate generally high effectiveness ratings in all identified dimensions. Multiple linear regression analysis furthermore shows that higher perceived effectiveness is determined by staff members’ positive attitude towards student representatives, an effect which is weaker in alliances with a separate student governance body. A higher discrepancy between expectation and reality regarding the amount of power they are granted in decision-making processes is negatively associated with students’ perceived effectiveness. By discussing this contribution both in academic and practical terms, it offers guidance for future research as well as the design of student engagement models in particular and public participation processes in general.