Using Student Participation to improve Higher Education Models: Lessons from the development of a Comprehensive Student Participation Plan

Abstract

The literature shows that despite the strength of the principles shared around the importance of the strategic participation of students in the good management of higher education institutions, the practice is far below the desired standards. This chapter explores the power of comprehensive student participation plans to improve higher education models by fostering the development of a broader and multidimensional culture of student participation. Empirical contribution draws on the recent and innovative experience developed at the University of Évora, a public university in Portugal, a south European country. At the end, it is expected that the lessons learned from this experience might help worldwide higher education systems and institutions, administrators, faculty, and trustees to understand how specific countries structure their higher education systems and how they are dealing with global critical issues, thus increasing awareness and capacity to develop solutions addressing identified challenges.