Student Voice and Participation in Music Teacher Education at German-Speaking (Music) Universities

The importance of student participation for motivation, learning outcomes, and institutional development has been widely acknowledged in higher education research (Tremp et al., 2024). Involving students as active partners rather than passive recipients fosters democratic competences, autonomy, and responsibility - key qualities for future music educators (Clausen & Sammer, 2023; Schmidt & Abramo, 2020; Anderson et al., 2019). However, despite a growing international discourse on student voice and partnership (Fredriksen et al., 2023; Müller-Kuhn et al., 2021), there remains a lack of systematic empirical research on the actual scope and quality of student participation in music teacher education (MTE). This study presents the first large-scale empirical investigation of the status and aspirations of participation among German MTE students. Using a quantitative survey design, it examines both the experienced reality and the desired ideal of participation across five areas of higher education: (1) overall participation; (2) governance, institutional culture & financial decision-making; (3) curriculum development & program design; (4) teaching, courses, exams & projects; (5) individual study pathways & autonomy. Building on frameworks of student voice and participatory governance, the study explores existing institutional structures, their utilization by students, and students’ normative expectations toward their institution and themselves. Furthermore, it investigates the relationship between participation and variables such as motivation, responsibility, study satisfaction, and self-efficacy, informed by self-determination theory. By focusing on the under-researched field of participatory culture in artistic-pedagogical higher education, and by contrasting experienced with desired forms of participation, the project seeks to identify structural and cultural factors that shape students’ agency. The findings contribute to evidence-based discussions on participatory governance and institutional development within (music) universities.