Optimistic Despite Coronavirus

RWTH students are using the “Entscheidungsnavi,” or decision navigator, during the Coronavirus pandemic.

The Entscheidungsnavi online tool developed by RWTH's Decision Theory and Financial Services Group under the direction of Professor Rüdiger von Nitzsch, supports individuals in making important professional and private decisions. The RWTH researchers have now investigated how the coronavirus crisis affects students’ personal decisions. “Young people in particular are affected by uncertainty about studies, jobs, and life planning during the crisis. We see that some of our students are unsure about the future when asked about their plans after graduation. Many are hesitant when it comes to defining a specific career path,” said doctoral student Mendy Toensfeuerborn.

The online tool helps students to look more closely at how they come to decisions and then build decision-making skills. As a part of course projects, it also used in teaching. “By reflecting on their values while structuring goals they want to positively impact with a decision, students learn creative techniques to identify paths of action,” von Nitzsch explained.

In the course projects, 675 students grappled with mapping out their future educational and professional paths. They used the decision navigator to consider their future career path in a structured and objective way. Eighty-five percent of them see this decision-making process as an opportunity to positively shape their future despite the coronavirus crisis. Fifteen percent, on the other hand, feel that having to come to any decisions right now is a problem or even a crisis for them.

Source: Press and Communications