The importance of student participation for motivation, learning outcomes, and institutional development has been widely acknowledged in higher education research (Tremp et al., 2024). Involving students as active partners rather than passive recipients fosters democratic competences, autonomy, and responsibility - key qualities for future music educators (Clausen & Sammer, 2023; Schmidt & Abramo, 2020; Anderson et al., 2019). However, despite a growing international discourse on student voice and partnership (Fredriksen et al., 2023; Müller-Kuhn et al., 2021), there remains a lack of systematic empirical research on the actual scope and quality of student participation in music teacher education (MTE).
This study presents the first large-scale empirical investigation of the status and aspirations of participation among German MTE students. Using a quantitative survey design, it examines both the experienced reality and the desired ideal of participation across five domains of higher education: (1) governance, institutional culture & financial decision-making; (2) curriculum development; (3) teaching, courses, and projects, (4) individual study pathways; and (5) networking within and beyond the institution. Building on frameworks of student voice and participatory governance, the study explores existing institutional structures, their utilization by students, and students’ normative expectations toward their institution and themselves. Furthermore, it investigates the relationship between participation and variables such as motivation, responsibility, study satisfaction, and self-efficacy, informed by self-determination theory.
By focusing on the under-researched field of participatory culture in artistic-pedagogical higher education, and by contrasting experienced with desired forms of participation, the project seeks to identify structural and cultural factors that shape students’ agency. The findings contribute to evidence-based discussions on participatory governance and institutional development within (music) universities.

‘Cultural diversity’ has been addressed in many music educational theories and concepts, such as Multicultural Music Education (Elliot, 1990) World Music Education (Campbell, 2016), Intercultural Music Pedagogy (Ott, 2011; Barth & Stroh, 2021) or Culturally Responsive Teaching (Lind & McKoy 2016). However, the problem of reproducing inequalities by addressing difference remains unsolved (Honnens, 2017), both in music classrooms and music universities. Thus, critical voices have been asking about the underlying reasons for continuous inequalities within diverse music practices in music teacher training (Buchborn et al., 2021) and consequences associated with addressing ‘cultural diversity‘ (Tralle, 2024).

Based on such considerations my empirical research focusses on discourses of ‘cultural diversity’ that underly social practices of privilege, oppression and marginalization (Klingovsky et al., 2021) in music teacher training. I argue that ‘cultural diversity’, as we reproduce it, is embedded in power structures. Therefore, the research question addresses how ‘cultural diversity’ is being (re-)constructed and what knowledge on cultural differences and normality are being (re-)produced in this context? Following Bührmann’s “reflexive diversity research programme (2021), I understand “diversity not as [a] given, but [rather] as an effect of diverse practices.“ Therefore, I analyse effects of practices that produce ‘cultural diversity‘, including practices of normalisation (Foucault, 1977) or arrangements of differences (Bührmann, 2021).

The study draws on data from problem-centred interviews (Lamnek, 2005) with students of different semesters and music education university curricula. Through „interpretative-reconstructive discourse analysis and grounded theory methodology“ (Gasteiger & Schneider, 2014), this study aims to uncover practices that shape our knowledge of ‘cultural diversity‘ in music teacher training. Preliminary findings on power relations, hierarchies and differentiation that structure the formation of knowledge in music teacher training in Austria will be shared. The overall goal to critically expand reflexive positions on ‘cultural diversity’ in music (teacher) education shall be discussed.