20 years KIT Partnerhochschule des Spitzensports meets SAMEurope

The international mobility of student-athletes was under the spotlight during this SAMEurope event as KIT celebrated 20 years of being a partner university of high-level sports in Germany. Participants exchanged views on the project, and on related matters such as the positive youth development through sports or mobility. As KIT is leading the sociological study conducted in the frame of SAMEurope, speakers presented the results of their research studies related to positive youth development through mobility or high-level sports.

They highlighted the positive impact of international mobility on students on the one hand, and the positive impact of practicing high-level sports as a student on the other. This is the perfect starting point of SAMEurope’s sociological study on the “Impacts of an academic mobility on student-athletes’ employability”.

Student-athletes took an active part in the event too! Between two talks, the participants could enjoy sports demonstrations of KIT students. First, the Sparkling Skippers from Germersheim performed their last dress rehearsal before the German Championship on the occasion of the event. The four female rope skippers of the team are enrolled in different faculties of KIT; however, they pursue a common goal: the participation in the World Championship 2023. Then, Georg Helzer, also student-athlete at the KIT, put on a break dance show as his sport is newly introduced to the Olympic Games. In addition to their implication in the show acts, the attendance of athlete-students to the event gave participants the opportunity to exchange views with the people most directly impacted by the project.

To wrap up the event on a high note, Per Thorén from Chalmers University, Dr. Klaus Rümmele from KIT, Martin Santelmann from ADH, Sarah Seidl from the Rhine-Neckar Metropolitan Region and Mikaelle Assani, a Dual Career student at KIT discussed “How can DC-structures at universities benefit from European support?” in a round table discussion.

The panel discussion covered a number of key topics related to the mobility of athlete-students. From the creation of specific Erasmus+ agreements for DC students to the importance of scholarships and the professional opportunities encountered by athlete-students after their graduation, the participants demonstrated the importance of supporting DC students at all levels. As a result of these discussions, the impact and value of university networks such as SAMEurope have been successfully illustrated.S