We, the VSStÖ, demand a free, democratic and emancipatory university that is equally accessible to all. Just complaining, without advocating for change, is not enough, which is why we are constantly campaigning for positive change. We fight for a progressive and equal society, without relying on others to make the right decisions for us.
“Educate yourselves, because we need all your wisdom. Move, because we need all your enthusiasm. Organise yourselves, because we need all your strength!” – Antonio Gramsci
The central idea of the socialist concept of education is the idea that current living conditions can be changed and improved. These conditions are dependent on current socio-political values. The currently prevailing system, within which our universities also exist, is not a rigid, natural phenomenon, as some would pretend, but instead a product of oppressive, capitalist and sexist power relations that have been reproduced for centuries. When it comes to changing and simultaneously improving circumstances, learning is an essential factor. It describes the change in behaviour, thinking and feeling through experience. We are convinced that change in this doomed system can be achieved through education.
Tuition fees, entrance tests, pressure to perform, third-party funding, strict prerequisite chains, unpaid compulsory internships, the increasing influence of economic factors in the education sector, restrictions on student co-determination and so on. The introduction of neoliberal and neoconservative values and world views into the organisation of our higher education system presents us students with particular challenges. The increased economisation of education massively contradicts our concept of education!
Teaching and research must work for the common good, far removed from capitalist competitive thinking, and not satisfy market economy interests.
Our basic socialist understanding strives for a democratic university for all. A person’s social background should not determine whether they are allowed to enjoy education; the entire society should be given access to higher education! It should not matter whether a person has an apprenticeship qualification or a school-leaving certificate. Only the real interest in studying should enable access. In addition, structures and committees at universities must be designed in such a way that students have more of a say in the organisation of their studies.
The funding of universities is one of the key issues in higher education policy debates. If you take a closer look, it becomes clear that the number of students bears no relation to the financial resources available.
There must be a rethink in the organisation of the university budget. We are calling for universities to be funded with 2% of GDP, for funding that enables the needs of each individual location to be addressed, for staff requirements to be based on student numbers, and for support to be provided to achieve socio-political objectives (e.g. FLINTA* funding, ecology and sustainability, and digitalisation status) by creating positive stimuli.
FLINTA* stands for female, lesbians, inter, non-binary, trans and agender* and is an attempt to find a term for a group of people who are not cis male.
“Anyone can go to university anyway” – a much-heard saying, but one that does not correspond to reality at all. Many people are denied access to tertiary education simply because of their parents’ financial situation and more than 60% of us students have to work alongside our studies in order to finance our lives. This additional effort extends the duration of studies and forces many to pay tuition fees or even drop out in the long term. We want barrier-free access to our universities. An accurate and seamless financial aid system, affordable housing, free public transport and the expansion of childcare places. No entrance tests, no tuition fees.
Our higher education system as a whole is full of barriers. These can manifest themselves in many different ways: They can be financial, physical or psychological. We want unconditional accessibility in university buildings & student residences, courses that are also accessible to visually and hearing impaired people and can be streamed online, alternative grading formats, more therapy places on a sickness certificate & the expansion of therapy centres, the right to take a break from studying without losing financial aid and without being forced to give reasons, and the destigmatisation of mental and physical impairments.
Even in the 21st century, we are still a long way from complete and genuine gender equality. Patriarchal structures are still deeply rooted in our society and are reflected in various forms at universities. In order to be able to combat these sustainably and in the long term, the fight against reactionary world views must also be waged at universities. Students must be encouraged to recognise structural and institutionalised injustices and combat all forms of discrimination. In addition, we call for mandatory awareness training for all teaching staff, active FLINTA* promotion and combating the leaky pipeline.
FLINTA* stands for female, lesbians, inter, non-binary, trans and agender* and is an attempt to find a term for a group of people who are not cis male.
Discrimination against queer people and ignorance about LGBTQIAP+ issues are still part of everyday life. Universities are not a separate space from society, but always a reflection of it. Heteronormative views still prevail, even in academia. We call for an active debate on queer political issues and the expansion of contact points for all those oppressed by patriarchy and heteronormative discrimination. As a first small step, we also need unisex toilets at every university.
Students of colour and/or students with a migration background repeatedly encounter racism, prejudice and discrimination. Anti-Semitism is also still widespread at Austrian universities. This discrimination is a structural problem and also has an impact on the content of teaching and research: most curricula are filled with white, Eurocentric theories that uncritically reproduce the colonial and imperial way of life of the global North. Anti-racist topics, such as imperialism and post-colonial theories, are usually completely absent. This is not what a free, complete and critical education looks like! We want an anti-racist higher education system with independent contact and reporting points for cases of discrimination, with the promotion of People of Colour among students and teaching staff and a revised curriculum that does not reproduce racist content and is actively anti-racist.