A diverse student body can attract open-minded talents with curious minds and open hearts interested in experiencing human differences at your institution. If you manage to recruit well-rounded inspired learners, and they are provided with opportunities to intellectually and emotionally connect, chances are great they will remember and tell others about their experience.

However, since complex environments, like university campuses, carry the risk of producing injustice and fostering tensions through structural biases and unresolved group conflicts, this asset must be managed wisely.  

The discourse on diversity in higher education seems to be shifting from binary and group-specific (domestic vs foreign, male vs female, mentally healthy vs mentally ill, etc.) to non-binary and intersectional frames (planetary, multipolar, neuro-diverse, belonging to the LGBTQIA spectrum, etc.) that emphasise the multiplicity and fluidity of overlapping narratives, orientations and identities roaming hybrid social spaces.

To not feel overwhelmed by this unprecedented volume of diverse self-identities and other representations concurring within and across multiple analogue and digital spheres, we need to first reduce complexity and then develop the pragmatics.  

‍

The Power of Language

The term “minority student” serves as a useful tool. “Minority” does not only refer to an underrepresented group of individuals that share identity claims outnumbered by other groups of individuals that do not share these claims. It is a powerful political notion that highlights that majorities – often dominant and equipped with superior power and privilege – tend to disregard and violate the needs and rights of these minorities, who are at risk of suffering distress caused by perceived or real prejudice, stereotype threat, hostility, stigma, and exclusion.

That being said, we must remain mindful of the categories we use for structuring our perceptions. It may be necessary to review our conceptions of “ideal student life cycles and outcomes” and apply more heterogeneous, multidimensional, hybrid and non-linear models in our analyses. In fact, liberal democratic societies have been delving into discourses around equality, equity and social justice for quite some time.

By now, we have audits and agendas that can guide our university policymakers in their efforts to not only prevent discrimination and marginalisation but enable fruitful exchange across and beyond the boundaries of culture, identity and vulnerability. But how do we curb potential disparities and unleash students’ true diversity potential? There are several approaches that can be taken into consideration.

‍

Diversity-oriented Student Marketing

Top universities that attract talents from all over the world might have the best chances for naturally recruiting a balanced mix of students of diverse nationalities, ethnicities, genders, social backgrounds, identities, etc. Connecting with school counsellors who can help identify talents among minority groups, and educational fairs organised in specific countries or communities conducted by diverse and culturally sensitive staff could be a great starting point.

However, since the contact hypothesis sometimes equates wishful thinking more than empiric reality, just mixing minorities and enabling representation isn’t enough.  

‍

Creating Safe Spaces

The physical and virtual spaces in which students learn and work together should offer conducive set-ups, tools and break-out rooms that facilitate safe communication and allow an undisturbed and free exchange of ideas without the presence of powerful others. Besides academia, of course, students are mixing and mingling at their apartments, clubs, bars, gyms, social networks and other places off- and online.

Protecting and empowering student minorities across all those physical and virtual domains may entail a wide array of measures ranging from hiring culturally-sensitive and psychologically-minded teaching staff using gender-neutral language and issuing trigger warnings before discussing potentially disturbing content to implementing student-run security presences at party locations, agreeing on gestures for signalling perceived harassment and providing access to confidential counselling at physically sheltered or digitally accessible places where students can receive support from well-trained professionals without feeling exposed. 

‍

Developing a Code of Conduct 

Perhaps, your institution already has a Community Standard that communicates how your vision effectively and appropriately communicates, cooperates and resolves conflicts that may emerge during physical and non-physical encounters. If not, or the virtual dimension has not been paid attention to yet, this is a chance to develop or adjust it.

Ideally this should be done bottom-up by facilitating student participation and including as many minorities and stakeholders as possible in the process.  After ratification and dissemination, you can educate all community members about your ethics, devise complaint and conflict resolution procedures, raise awareness about consequences for misbehaviour and equip your university with robust bodies and processes for investigation and enforcement, if violations have been detected.  

‍

Engaging Student Leaders

As much as you might already know about student minorities and their struggles through need assessments or direct conversations with affected individuals, there is still much to learn and explore.

Student representatives, like club leaders, the president of an Undergraduate Student Government or the Chair of a Graduate Student Association are examples of potentially resourceful allies that can help you identify the needs of potentially vulnerable student groups.

Regular jour-fixes between student leaders and the deans or directors of relevant departments as well as open and active communication channels between students, staff, and faculty will provide invaluable opportunities to learn about emerging trends, issues, and concerns. 

‍

Creating Intercultural Community Spirit

Another category of helpful measures includes the systematic programming of intercultural training and awareness campaigns involving different campus groups participating in information booths, speeches, film nights, exhibitions and performances. In terms of educational offerings, some universities have started to provide hybrid workshops and topical cheer-up sessions aiming to stimulate cross-sectional learning and intercultural competence development.

Here, approaches that not only target incomings during orientation week, but facilitate intercultural learning throughout the entire student life cycle, rely on concepts that involve staff awareness training as well, and promote peer programs seem particularly effective and engaging.

Last but not least, our higher education institutions will benefit the most from promoting lasting traditions for minority affirmation, validation, and celebration of diversity. This can be done every day, by showing genuine interest and empathy with the vulnerable, as well as at special occasions like international awareness days, cultural events, and street parades.  All of these iterative actions can help bring about a properly inclusive and truly diverse community.