The student survey analyses the living situation, social background and attitudes of students as well as their study situation and the associated challenges.
Its aim is to obtain a realistic picture of the living and study situation of students in Germany. The situation of universities and students is heard and made accessible to a broad public via educational reporting.
The results can be used as a basis for decision-making and to show where politics, society and universities need to intervene in order to improve the situation of students.
It needs survey results, because only when people are asked,
... how students experience challenges and difficulties in everyday study life can improve the situation for everyone.
... how the study situation presents itself in everyday study life, measures can be taken and actions initiated to react.
... how much money students need for their living expenses, the BAföG can be adjusted accordingly or support programmes can be set up.
... how the challenges of students with child(ren), with a study-related disability or with a migration background present themselves, they can be supported in a targeted manner.
... why students drop out of their studies or why delays occur in the course of their studies, help, counselling and support services can be adapted accordingly.
-
What is the student survey?
The student survey analyses the study and living situation, the social and financial framework conditions and the attitudes of students on topics such as political orientation or freedom of opinion, but also on career goals and discrimination. It is the largest survey of its kind conducted in Germany.
Its goal is to obtain a realistic picture of the situation of students in Germany. In this way, it is possible to identify where politics, society and universities need to take action in order to improve the situation of students.
The Student Survey builds on and continues a series of studies: the “Social Survey”, the “Student Survey”, the “best - Impaired Studying” and the international comparative study “EUROSTUDENT”.
The Social Survey of DSW and DZHW is a long-term study on the economic and social situation of students in Germany. It has been conducted every three years since 1951.
The Student Survey is a long-term survey that records in detail the study situation at German universities as well as student orientations and interests. It has been conducted every three years since 1982 by the University of Konstanz's Higher Education Research Group.
The ‘best - Studying with an impairment’ survey investigates the situation of students with an impairment that makes studying difficult. It has been conducted in cooperation with the DSW and DZHW since 2012.
The European study series ‘EUROSTUDENT’ analyses the situation of students in various European countries.
-
What is the data used for?
The survey data will be analysed in anonymised form by researchers from the German Centre for Higher Education Research and Science Studies (DZHW).. The data is available as a Scientific Use File (SUF) via the Research Data Centre of the DZHW for researchers to conduct in-depth research. Of course, all applicable data protection regulations are strictly adhered to, so that no conclusions can be drawn about individual response behaviour. In addition to the EU's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), our activities are also based on the research ethics standards for quality assurance in online research co-developed by the Arbeitsgemeinschaft Sozialwissenschaftlicher Institute e. V. (ASI).
-
For whom are the results of the survey important?
The reports from the student survey are used by politicians, universities, student representatives, student services associations, associations and academic organisations as a basis for educational policy decisions, legislative changes and the direction of their work. The findings of this survey are also used by universities to improve the study situation or the counselling services for students, for example.
This study is of particular importance for academia, as the anonymised data can be used for secondary analyses by academia, but also by students and doctoral candidates, via the DZHW Research Data Centre following the project.
-
How is my data handled/how is data protection guaranteed?
Anonymity is guaranteed because
- the invitation to the survey and the implementation of the survey are carried out separately. The invitations to the survey are sent out by the universities, while the survey itself and the analysis are carried out by the staff of the German Centre for Higher Education Research and Science Studies (DZHW). It is not possible to link e-mail addresses with the survey data
- higher education institutions will not know what you have answered individually
- the data is analysed in strict compliance with data protection regulations and the results are published in such a way that no conclusions can be drawn about individuals.
The quality assurance standards for online research adopted in 2001 apply. These were developed specifically for market and social research by the Arbeitsgemeinschaft Sozialwissenschaftlicher Institute e. V. (ASI), the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Online-Forschung (D.G.O.F.), the Berufsverband Deutscher Markt- und Sozialforscher e. V. (BVM) and the Arbeitskreis Deutscher Markt- und Sozialforschungsinstitute e. V. (ADM).
In addition to the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), our activities are also based on the research ethics standards for quality assurance for online research co-developed by the Arbeitsgemeinschaft Sozialwissenschaftlicher Institute e. V. (ASI).
-
How can I participate?
Students who have received an email from their university with a link to the online questionnaire can take part. The universities usually contact only students who were previously selected through a random sampling process. It takes an average of 34 minutes to complete the questionnaire, with the option of saving it temporarily and completing and submitting the online questionnaire at a later date.
-
Why can only every third person participate?
There are almost 2.9 million students in Germany - surveying all of them would simply be too time-consuming and would not make sense from a social science perspective. But: The representativeness of the student survey is nevertheless guaranteed. The results of the sample reflect the study and life situations of all students almost realistically.
-
Who decides which students are allowed to participate?
The selection of students invited to participate in the survey is based on the principle of statistical randomisation.
The participating universities draw a random sample from their student register in accordance with the specifications of the German Centre for Higher Education Research and Science Studies (DZHW). This means that every third person studying on a Bachelor's, Master's or traditional degree program is invited to take part.
-
What questions are asked in the survey?
The survey deals thematically with the study and life situation. This includes questions about the life situation (e.g. employment, housing situation), as well as questions about the family background and educational history (e.g. access to studies) and the current study situation (e.g. motives for choosing a subject, desired degree, assessment of the study situation, digitalisation of studies). There are also questions that deal with student attitudes (e.g. towards politics). You can find the survey topics here (Link).
-
How long does it take to complete the questionnaire?
On average 34 minutes. The duration of the survey varies depending on the depth of certain questions. In principle, we assume a duration of 30 minutes; if sub-questions are included and thus certain areas of life are surveyed in greater depth, the participation time can be increased to up to 40 minutes.You have the option of saving your survey status temporarily and continuing the survey at a later time from the point where processing was interrupted.
-
Who conducts the student survey?
The survey is being conducted by the German Centre for Higher Education Research and Science Studies (DZHW). The German National Association for Student Affairs(DSW) is a cooperation partner in the project. The study is funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF).
The German Centre for Higher Education Research and Science Studies (DZHW) is a research institute based in Hanover and funded by the German federal and state governments. As an international competence centre for higher education and science research, the DZHW conducts data surveys and analyses, provides research-based services for higher education and science policy and makes its own and external data sets available to the scientific community via a research data centre. The DZHW has been conducting various surveys in the field of student research since 1976 and can draw on many years of expertise in both methodological and content-related issues relating to higher education.
The German National Association for Student Affairs(DSW) is the association of 57 student and student services associations in Germany that support students on behalf of the state, including with canteens, halls of residence, the implementation of BAföG, psychological counselling and social counselling, childcare and services for foreign students or students with disabilities.
