Paper/Speech Details of Conference Program for the 31st NISPAcee Annual Conference Program Overview WG7: Public Administration Education Author(s) Oana Matilda Sabie Bucharest University of Economic Studies Bucharest Romania First author: Oana Matilda Sabie, Bucharest University of Economic Studies, Bucharest, Romania Second author: Elvira Nica, Bucharest University of Economic Studies, Bucharest, Romania Third author: Armenia Androniceanu, Bucharest University of Economic Studies, Bucharest, Romania Title Higher education in the Metaverse. A glimpse into the future File Paper files are available only for conference participants, please login first. Presenter Oana Matilda Sabie Abstract The COVID-19 pandemic compelled humanity to re-evaluate the ways in which professors teach their students and also how they learn. The metaverse, as a 3D digital arena that combines elements of the actual world with a virtual and augmented world, has been credited as an emerging pattern in education that has a tremendous potential for the future. On the other hand, the developing topic of the metaverse was little discussed from an educational point of view in the previous studies. Education and training are playing a crucial role in stimulating growth and innovation, trying to respond to the opportunities and challenges of today's digital transformation, as the COVID-19 pandemic has brought about unique changes in the educational landscape around the world. These digital transformations affect the personal, social, and professional lives of teachers and students, in a time when the university environment has become increasingly diverse, dynamic and competitive. The scope of the research is to analyse the perception of the main stakeholders in public administration schools regarding the potential use of metaverse in the future provision of educational services. Regarding the methodology, the data was collected using the questionnaire and the interview. The main benefits of such a study consist in identifying potential applications and challenges of the metaverse for universities educational purposes and how metaverse can shape tomorrow’s educational landscape. This research will represent an important contribution to the international literature, in the field of digital education, as well as in the field of public policy. In higher education, decision-makers and researchers may have a clear picture of the metaverse, which would serve as a starting point for further research.
