Abstract
Social innovation in Austrian HEIs is discussed under the headline of their “Third Mission.” The HE sector is pressured to have more and more impact on society. Internationally speaking, many countries benefit from national policies and networks in the Third Sector, but policies in Austria were initiated only recently, in 2017, on a national level. Interestingly, the service learning approach as an innovative and socially responsible teaching methodology stands out in Austrian HE. This article classifies the developments of the Third Sector in Austria in the form of a policy brief. Austria has a growing community of practice in social innovation and service learning. The article gives insight into the strategic developments in Austria and is underpinned with recommendable action to be transferred to others.
Highlights
Throughout their long history, HEIs have regularly been confronted with intensive discussions about their position in society
While in the Anglo-American context, civic engagement, community-based research, or action methodologies in the Third Sector are guiding terms (Nigro, 2017), the umbrella term “Third Mission” has Policy Brief Austria prevailed in German-speaking countries
Austria has a growing community of practice in Third Sector policy, social innovation, and service learning, policy developments have never been summarized from a multi-stakeholder perspective
Summary
Throughout their long history, HEIs have regularly been confronted with intensive discussions about their position in society. Service learning as a Third Sector activity, is not free of criticism: Once thought to benefit local communities, it is criticized for serving HEI goals, such as providing research laboratories for faculty and venues for students to implement applied coursework (Holland, 2005). Instead of helping to bring about transformational change in communities, service learning has become a technical practice with a “charity” orientation and in this sense mirrors a neoliberal approach in the transformation of HE (Raddon and Harrison, 2015). Austria has a growing community of practice in Third Sector policy, social innovation, and service learning, policy developments have never been summarized from a multi-stakeholder perspective
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
