International Students in German Higher Education: How Quality-Characteristics of the Study Programme Relate to Student Satisfaction Over the Course of Studies

Germany is the most attractive non-English-speaking destination for international students. Their number has considerably grown over the last 10 years. However, the dropout rate among international students is higher than among domestic students. This is an undesirable situation given the necessity of training highly skilled labour and integrating them into the German labour market. It raises the question of student satisfaction and the quality of study programmes. In particular, we examine how the perception of study programme characteristics affects student satisfaction over three semesters. We analyse this question using the International Student Survey, a longitudinal online-panel survey of international degree-seeking students in Germany (N = 2428). The results show that increases in the perceived teaching quality, teacher support and student integration relate to increases in student satisfaction throughout their studies. High exam frequencies and overcrowded classes reduce satisfaction values. Our findings emphasise the need to improve the quality of teaching and study programmes in order to increase satisfaction, and therefore success, of international students.