One in five students find it difficult to express their opinion. 

This may be due to a desire to fit in, fear of conflict or fear of harassment.

– Especially as a new, young student, it is scary to stand out or challenge an opinion you perceive many people to hold. You want to fit in and make friends, says Rose Jahanfarah. 

She is in her seventh and final year of study on a master's degree in human rights and multiculturalism. She previously studied English, law and political science at the University of South-Eastern Norway (USN)

– The most important thing you learn in higher education is that you discuss in order to learn, not to be right. You may learn something, someone else may learn something, and often you both learn something.

– You're allowed to be weird

Rose has been dedicated as a student and has been an active member of the Student Democracy in South-Eastern Norway (SDSN) since day one. She has also been politically active since she was 14 years old and has participated in public social debates.

– It's so important to have opinions and to know that your opinions matter. You must be allowed to be a bit weird and stand out, says Rose.

Although Rose has a lot of experience of saying what she thinks, she still finds it scary:

– I see myself as anxious and afraid of conflict. There have been many times when I have kept quiet rather than saying what I think. 

– But I will be anxious whether I say something or not, so why not just do it? Afterwards, it always feels better to have said something than to overthink why you did not, says Rose.

Developing and changing your mind

Rose encourages other students to be open to other people's opinions, but also to changing their own:

– It is absolutely allowed to change your mind. The point of life is to develop and change your mind about things. That is when you know you have heard good arguments and learned something new! I have also changed my position and opinions many times, including in politics, and I think it is rubbish when things become too black and white. Grey is sexy!

As a new student, Rose moved into student accommodation with another student. The experience was particularly formative at the start of her studies:

– My flatmate and I came from completely different backgrounds and parts of the country, and right at the start we were very careful about discussing and finding out what the other thought about specific topics. In the end we discovered that we had a lot in common. Although we could disagree on details, we had good conversations in which both were genuinely interested in learning and understanding why the other thought as they did.

Fear of harassment

Today’s debate climate is different from a few decades ago. Some may be afraid of reactions such as harassment and hate that follow from expressing their opinion and taking part in the debate. 

Rose has experienced this, both in politics and in student democracy:

– As a young female politician with an immigrant background, there have been times when adults are so opposed to what I say that they do things that are inappropriate, both in real life and online. An adult man once grabbed my arm in the grocery shop and was going to talk to me, and people knew which bus I took. It was very scary. 

– I have friends who have quit politics because of harassment. I have a great deal of understanding for that, and it is sad. I chose to use such incidents somewhat as motivation to continue. If a young girl’s opinion means so much that they react so strongly, then I am not going to throw it away, says Rose.