European universities have significantly changed the way of dealing with newcomers over the last thir-ty years. In the wake of the surge in enrolments, educators, professional staff, and authorities have suddenly been confronted with new categories of students. In addition, the governance of universities has undergone rapid changes concerning patterns of internationalisation and mobility, especially be-cause of the influence and the soft power of transnational organisations. The issues that have concer-ned researchers and authorities primarily regard the dropout of first-year students (FYS) and the utility of mobility programmes to reinforce a “European identity”.
With my research programme at King's College London, I have tried to better understand how univer-sities welcome and take actions to integrate FYS and students in mobility with a diverse background. These organisational conditions have not been sufficiently considered by educational researchers and practitioners yet. Most works focus merely on teaching, admission process, or material life conditions outside the university.
My research programme has had three main objectives: (1) to give an account of the concrete func-tioning of the policy concerning FYS and students in international mobility in British universities; (2) to conceive a framework suitable for comparative and international research regarding welcoming poli-cies for newcomers that reinforce teaching and learning processes; (3) to make a contribution to practitioners who seek to enrich newcomers’ experience and retention.
The UK has been the most suitable place to carry out this research for two reasons. First, some of its universities have been pioneers in carrying out initiatives for first-year students and students in interna-tional mobility. Second, there exists a more robust academic tradition in the UK exploring the first-year experience, compared to most countries in Europe.
