Exploring Future Imaginaries: A Comparative Study of Student Perspectives from England and Spain

This comparative paper delves into the future imaginaries of higher education students in England and Spain, with a specific focus on those pursuing studies in different disciplines. Employing a qualitative research approach that combines creative visual methods with usual focus group approach, we conducted focus groups to delve into students' core values, aspirations, and visions of the future. As contemporary higher education increasingly positions students as human capital and future workers, societal narratives emphasize career trajectories, employability, and work as paramount life aspirations (Brooks et al, 2022), little emphasis in research and policy is given to students themselves and their voices. Simultaneously, generational stereotypes depict them as hedonistic, with questionable work ethics and limited aspirations. This key value of this article is comparative as the unique and divergent social, policy and institutional contexts of England and Spain shape value and future imaginaries influenced for example by distinct hegemonic discourses in these societies.
This paper adopts the concept of "orientations" from Sarah Ahmed's work adapting it to explore how individuals navigate the complexities of envisioning their future. We investigate how young people approach their lives, the core values that shape their navigation and future life imaginaries and how they how they envisage reaching their destinations. These imaginaries also shape students in the institutional university environment in relation to the teaching staff and fellow students.
The findings present the stances, discourse and visual representations that reveal diverse ways in which young participants engage with the idea of the future, both personal and societal. Ultimately, this research contributes to a nuanced understanding of the intricate processes involved in shaping future imaginaries among students in England and Spain.