Study intensity

Amongst other things, students’ personal circumstances influence their study behaviour. In addition to their studies, students often have other obligations such as a job or (child) care duties etc., which prevent them from studying full-time. For this reason, the average study intensity is usually less than 100%.

Study intensity by gender and age class, since 2013/14

	2015/16	2017/18	2019/20	2021/22
Total	82%	81%	80%	80%
Gender
Male	82%	81%	80%	80%
Female	82%	81%	80%	80%
Age class
less than 20 years	94%	93%	93%	93%
20-24 years	88%	87%	85%	86%
25-29 years	73%	73%	72%	71%
30-39 years	61%	61%	60%	59%
40 years or older	53%	52%	52%	52%

Source: FSO - SHIS-studex, ASBOS

A student’s gender has a negligible impact on study intensity. The difference between men’s and women’s study intensity varied at most by less than one percentage point in all observed years of study.

However, study intensity varied greatly depending on a student’s age. The younger the students, the higher their study intensity. Among the under-20-year-olds, average study intensity ranged between 93% and 94% in the years observed. Among 20- to 24-year-olds, the average study intensity was between 85% and 88% and among 40-year-olds and older was between just 52% and 53%.

UIT: Group of fields of study

In 2021/22, study intensity at universities and institutes of technology (UIT) varied widely depending on the level of studies. The greatest study intensity was measured at Bachelor’s level with 85%, followed by Master’s degrees with 75%, and diploma courses for teacher education for upper secondary level teaching (Upper Secondary Diploma) with 46%. The faculty group also had an influence on study intensity. The greatest intensity was found in Medicine and Pharmacy (Bachelor 92%, Master 91%) and in Engineering, Architecture (Bachelor 94%, Master 77%). The lowest study intensity was observed among Humanities and Social Sciences’ Master’s students (68%).

UIT: Percentage of full-time students

The percentage of students at UITs, who studied full-time (intensity of 90% or more) in 2021/22, was on average 58% at Bachelor’s level, 39% at Master’s level and just 10% for Upper Secondary Diploma students. Highly structured programmes, such as those usually seen at Bachelor’s level, leave students with little leeway and have to be attended full-time, whereas other programmes (such as the upper secondary level teaching diploma) are designed to be frequented alongside work or at least offer the possibility of part-time studies with a lower study intensity.

The percentage of students with a study intensity of less than 50% was relatively small at Bachelor’s level in all groups of fields of study, reaching a maximum of 22%. At Master’s level, a lower study intensity was more common: in Humanities and Social Sciences as well as in the group of fields of study Interdisciplinary and Other, 35% of students showed intensities of less than 50%. The majority of students (63%) at Upper Secondary Diploma level had a study intensity of less than 50%.

UTE: Branch of study

In the academic year 2021/22, study intensity at the universities of teacher education (UTEs) was the highest at Bachelor’s level at 84%, followed by Master’s level (60%) and upper secondary level teacher diplomas (Upper Secondary Diploma, 47%). At UTEs, the level of study depends on the branch of study. For example, the greatest study intensity is observed in branches only available at Bachelor’s level (e.g. Pre-Primary and Primary). Subjects that must be attended alongside work (e.g. Upper Secondary (Vocational/Professional Education)) or that at least offer this option (e.g. Special Education or Subject-Specific Didactics) are characterised by a low study intensity.

UTE: Percentage of full-time students

In 2021/22, the percentage of UTEs’ students attending full-time studies (intensity of 90% or more) was on average 64% at Bachelor’s level. For students at Master’s and Upper Secondary Diploma level, these percentages were much smaller (18% and 13% respectively). In the branches of General Vocational, Special Education, and Professional Education there were almost no full-time students. These subjects are mostly frequented alongside work.

Further information

Tables