Ria Schroeder says no. She is the education policy spokeswoman for the FDP and we met her for an interview. Just two years ago, the 31-year-old MP ran in the Bundestag election with the promise to stand up for equal opportunities. At the time, she had just come out of campus and was aware of the precarious situation that many students had found themselves in due to Corona lockdowns, rising rents and inflation.

To date, the situation of many students has hardly improved. In Schroeder's Bundestag office, the FDP's mission statement "World's best education for everyone" still hangs framed. In an interview, my colleague Tanya Falenczyk and I wanted to find out whether Schröder is still serious about equal opportunities in 2023, or whether she has abandoned her old ideal.

Lukas Hildebrand, editor of SPIEGEL Start, wishes
you a lot of fun reading and discussing.

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Ria Schröder, 31: Ran for the FDP with the promise to ensure equal opportunities in education

Photograph:

Lena Giovanazzi / DER SPIEGEL

Ria Schröder: The FDP politician on Bafög and how she financed her own studies: High rents and inflation hit students particularly hard. Ria Schröder talks about whether Bafög is enough to live on and how she financed her own studies.

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Collaboration across generations (symbolic image)

Photograph:

Hinterhaus Productions/Getty Images

Retirement of the baby boomers: What I will miss about them: Young and old are enemies of each other in the workplace? My ass. When the baby boomers retire soon, I'm going to miss them a lot – at least some of them.

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In the world, crisis follows crisis – but in the world of work, things must continue as before? (Symbolic image)

Photo: ArLawKa AungTun / Getty Images

When the world is broken and the job seems pointless: The crises of this world do not stop when the working day begins. How to manage to deal with the feeling of dissonance – and why it's okay not to be okay.

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Bagels in the sunshine: autumn can also be beautiful

Photo: Sebastian Maas / DER SPIEGEL

»Everything Bagels« with »Schmear« – for 50 cents a piece: Some dishes had to be exported to the USA before they became world-famous. The bagel, for example, actually comes from Poland – and is often sold at far too high a price. At home, we can do it cheaper.