‘There’s this divide, the nice part and the chaotic part’: university students’ journeys to the classroom as an emotional experience

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Discussions about the student experience of higher education have become paramount in the wake of a (post)pandemic landscape. This article examines student geographies by focusing on the everyday travel practices that students engage in as they journey to the classroom. In doing so, it considers the potential effect these journeys may have on the student experience and consequently their wellbeing. This research employs a multidisciplinary approach utilising sociology, emotional geography and mobilities studies to conceptualise the journey to the classroom as one where emotions intersect with notions of space. To accomplish this, a project with 17 undergraduate students was conducted using focus groups and interviews along with the visual methods of autophotography (‘photo diaries’) and map drawing. This methodological approach meant journeys were explored in a more interpretive way as both a physical and emotional experience for the students to reflect on. Findings from this project acknowledge the nuance of emotional challenges faced by these students through three key themes that arose during these journeys: students’ concern about lateness, the emotional significance of their transitions through different spaces, and the reliance on emotion management mechanisms where negative emotional states were experienced. This article emphasises the importance of providing space for student expression, reflection and reflexivity to counter the emotional challenges they may face and which recognises the emotion work they engage in during this journey.