Open Access

Purpose In a knowledge-based society, one of the main driving forces of prosperity at city and regional levels is the ability to attract students and recently qualified graduates. The purpose of this paper is to identify the urban factors that contribute to “attractiveness” from a student perspective and to subsequently analyse the influence of these factors on students’ location choices. In the corresponding case study, the criteria identified were used to evaluate student satisfaction with the German city of Osnabrück. Design/methodology/approach A multi-level empirical research concept was used to analyse the relevant criteria. Focus group discussions served as the basis to design and conduct a survey of almost 2,300 students in the university city of Osnabrück at the end of 2016. A follow-up study in November 2017 at two universities in Berlin provided data for comparison. Findings Accessible – safe – clean and with affordable housing: these terms sum up the core expectations that students have of an attractive city. In contrast to the findings of Richard Florida regarding the creative class, cultural opportunities, exciting nightlife and a multicultural population were not important factors among the survey participants. Research limitations/implications As the study was conducted in two cities only, the findings cannot be generalised. It should be replicated in at least five other cities to validate and compare the research findings presented here. Furthermore, this study focused on the factors influencing the attractiveness of the city as a whole. However, the attractiveness of a specific neighbourhood may be of greater relevance to the decision-making process. As housing plays a major role, students’ particular needs with regard to accommodation should also be examined at greater depth. Practical implications Insights generated by the empirical study provide relevant information that may assist city stakeholders in taking effective measures regarding place management to attract and retain students. Originality/value To date, little research has been undertaken to empirically examine the specific factors that German students look for when deciding where to study and live. The goal of this paper is to present new empirical insights concerning the quality-of-life factors that influence students’ decision-making processes.

This article is based on an international comparative social policy module held annually at Malmö University (Sweden) with partner universities from several countries. Our study examines the results of intra- and interpersonal dynamics among participants and lecturers, which we call "productive tension", in relation to overarching questions about knowledge acquisition and the importance of reflexivity and reflectivity in the learning process. Students and faculty create a "community of practice" (CoP) (Lave & Wenger 1991) that benefits from a continuous interactive environment and direct engagement. Our study uses a mixed method approach. The analysis considers qualitative data from interviews with the participating students and quantitative data from questionnaires. In this article, we focus on the productive tension inherent in the reflective and reflexive processes. Reflective and reflexive processes are identified that influence the students' experience of cross-border cooperation and their professional identity. Our study also demonstrates how the knowledge about "Social Work" as a profession can be broadened through international comparative teaching and learning. The main conclusion of this work is that reflective and reflexive learning processes in social work education enable participants to see and understand themselves from a broader perspective and strengthen their own professional identity.