Becoming a Mobile Student – a Processual Perspective on German Degree Student Mobility

Abstract

A recurring question with regard to international student mobility/migration is why students go abroad. Most often, this question is answered by pointing out different factors, such as the students' stated reasons for going abroad, specific psychological traits, or differences in economic and social capital. This paper, however, takes a processual perspective by asking how students become geographically mobile, thus perceiving studying abroad not as the result of a one‐time choice but as the outcome of different long‐term biographical and social processes and events. The analysis is based on narrative biographical interviews with German degree mobile students who went abroad to another European country. By focusing on how previous mobility experiences, the students' social embeddedness, and the structuring force of the order and timing of events all further the occurrence of student mobility, this paper highlights crucial aspects of this process. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Why students travel abroad (and so many others do not): Exploring predictors and decision-making processes in study-related student travel

“…Some authors posit that the decision to take part in international activities is a result of rational choice (Lörz et al, 2016), others (Carlson, 2013;Netz, 2015;Wernisch, 2016) believe that it is the result of a decision-making process. As Carlson (2013) Netz (2015) proposes a model with three phases, based on Gollwitzer's classic Rubicon model of action phases.…”

“…As Carlson (2013) Netz (2015) proposes a model with three phases, based on Gollwitzer's classic Rubicon model of action phases. We have augmented this approach, taking into account Wernisch's concept of thresholds that have to be crossed (2016) (see Figure 1).…”

Between striated and smooth space: Exploring the topology of transnational student mobility

“…Previous events in other places were important to students' present experiences of place (Carlson, 2013), but notions of a possible future notably gave meaning to the present.…”

“…In the latter notion of power, we have found the essence of understanding the process of becoming a transnational student, which not only involves historical conditions and contemporary practices but also the consideration of students' expectations and plans. Our concern here relates to how 'power to' makes things happen through assemblages may explain the process of becoming a transnational student (Carlson, 2013;Tran, 2015;Zhang and Guo, 2015), but the possibility of becoming 'something more' than a student since student life is only a temporary situation linked to a larger life course.…”

“…The process is about not only "becoming" a transnational student (Carlson, 2013;Tran, 2015) but also becoming what lies beyond the student's temporary position. Accordingly, in this study regarding how transnational students relate to space and create student assemblages, the analytical approach that we propose concerns, first, the roles of both material and expressive practices in constructing the temporality of becoming a student.…”