Between short-term and medium-to-long-term responses: mapping the impact of COVID-19 on Italian universities

This paper presents an empirical analysis that maps the short-term and middle-to-long-term responses of Italian universities to the COVID-19 crisis by focussing on teaching activities. A representative sample of eighteen public universities was analysed to evaluate how they planned their teaching activities for the 2020–21 and 2021/2022 academic years and whether and how the pandemic pushed them to change their strategic plans for the following year. Based on a specific survey, an in-depth analysis of documents, and interviews, the findings reveal very similar short-term responses but three different types of medium-to-long-term responses: rebounding, proactive, and innovative. This empirical evidence indicates that scholars in higher education should heed the ways in which universities react and adapt in turbulent times when they have to make decisions under conditions of high uncertainty and recognize when crises can also become opportunities for change.