Student Survey

During the period from June 30th to July 31st, 2022, a total of 16.6% (2,744 out of 16,544) of the students at TU Braunschweig completed the Bielefeld Questionnaire on Study Conditions and Health. Of these, 2,199 questionnaires, corresponding to 13.3%, are considered. The results are representative. The highest participation rates are in the faculties of Life Sciences and Mechanical Engineering (each 22.4%). More than half of the students (54.9%) are enrolled in a Bachelor's degree program, 35.7% in a Master's degree program, and 9.4% are aiming for a state examination as their degree.

Gender: More female students (54.3%) than male students (44.8%) participated, making them slightly overrepresented in the study. 0.9% identify as diverse (population: 41.4% female, 58.5% male, 0.02% diverse, 0.07% no information provided).

Age: Over three-quarters (75.4%) of the students are between the ages of 18 and 25. In the overall population, 62.5% fall into this age group.

Family Responsibilities: The majority of students have no family responsibilities (care or caregiving) (91.6%).

Chronic Illness: Almost one-fifth of students report having a disability or chronic illness (16.8%).

First Generation: More than a third of students report being the first generation in their family to attend university (37.9%).

Employment: 63.7% of students work alongside their studies.

Health Status: As part of the analysis, students were asked about their health status and general well-being. The results were quite varied and mixed: Overall, 37.5% of students report that their health status during the last two months of their studies was "not really affected" or "not affected at all." 27.9% perceive some degree of impairment in their health status, and 34.6% feel somewhat or greatly affected.

There is also a very high or relatively high need for action regarding examination and study performance. 41.2% of students see a (very or rather) great need for action in this area. Almost two-thirds of students (67.4%) find study tasks and exam preparations during the lecture period (rather) burdensome. Additionally, module examination tasks are (rather) burdensome for 61.8% of students. For slightly more than half of the students (53.0%), the burdens during the exam period are (rather) not minimized by the organization of studies (e.g., sufficient spacing between exams, the possibility of a second exam date).

For over half of the students (55.6%), the evaluation of examination performance is comprehensible. 76.4% of the students are (rather) very satisfied with the support for their final thesis.

Almost 40% of students see a (very or rather) great need for action regarding career prospects. 55.3% of students indicate that the transition to a career (e.g., through the provision of contacts to potential employers) is not facilitated. 42.7% state that there are not enough events with practical relevance. The preparation for a post-study career is evaluated differently. Students feel significantly better prepared for an academic career (53.9%) than for a professional career (30.4%).

For 55.3% of the students, the skills acquired during their studies are relevant to their career field. 81.1% of the students believe that their studies (rather) provide good future prospects. More than half of the students (51.3%) cope (rather) well with their study requirements.