This episode of Conversations4Citizenship features Dr. Magdalena Fellner, an educational researcher exploring the systemic barriers to higher education within the German prison system and internationally. Interviewed by Kamille Beye, Stella Micheong Cheong and Adam Peter Lang, Dr. Fellner refutes the idea that the academic capability to study is an inherent trait, arguing instead that it is socially and institutionally constructed. She critique-analyzes how gatekeepers limit incarcerated individuals to basic skills and vocational training rather than transformational higher education, pointing out that female prisoners face even fewer academic opportunities. Dr. Fellner advocates for a relational, lifelong learning approach supported by robust university-prison partnerships, which dramatically lower recidivism rates. However, she stresses that education is a human right, not a cure-all, and must coexist with fundamental structural support. Finally, she previews her new research examining why highly educated individuals commit white-collar crimes.

If you are curious about the Higher Education Institution-Prison Partnerships, check out her works below.

• Fellner, M. (2025). Universities as elite allies. Disclosing global patterns of inequality in tertiary education across time. In Wimmer, C. & Rieder, T. (Eds.), Global Inequalities. Leiden: Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004733626_011
• Fellner, M. & Dreisinger, B. (forthcoming). Education Not Incarceration Across Borders: Prison, University and Education Behind Bars. Special Issue, Tertiary Education and Management. https://link.springer.com/collections/afjgeefhde
• This meta-study of the United States shows that individuals who participated in educational programmes were 43% less likely to reoffend than those who did not, and that every dollar spent on correctional education saves taxpayers five dollars in reincarceration costs. See Davis, Lois M., Jennifer L. Steele, Robert Bozick, Malcolm V. Williams, Susan Turner, Jeremy N. V. Miles, Jessica Saunders, and Paul S. Steinberg. How Effective Is Correctional Education, and Where Do We Go From Here? The Results of a Comprehensive Evaluation. RAND Corporation. 2014.

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