Beginning of Studies in Austria: Evaluation of the Entry and Orientation Phase (StEOP)

In Austria, all first-year students are required to complete a study entry and ori­en­ta­ti­on phase (StEOP) within the first four semesters. It comprises several courses and at least two exami­na­ti­ons, amounting to between eight and twenty ECTS credits. The StEOP aims to provide students with realistic insights into the academic requi­re­ments of their studies, as well as to offer an overview of the content and orga­ni­sa­tio­nal structure of their programme. Successful com­ple­ti­on of the StEOP is a pre­re­qui­si­te for con­ti­nuing one’s studies.

3s already evaluated the study entry and ori­en­ta­ti­on phase in 2020 in coope­ra­ti­on with the IHS. It was recom­men­ded to ensure the pos­si­bi­li­ty of com­ple­ting 30 ECTS credits in the first semester, as well as to establish internal uni­ver­si­ty moni­to­ring systems to track the StEOP. These recom­men­da­ti­ons were sub­se­quent­ly incor­po­ra­ted into the Universities Act 2002 (amendment 2021).

The current eva­lua­ti­on examines not only the Entry and Orientation Phase itself but, in par­ti­cu­lar, these internal uni­ver­si­ty moni­to­ring systems. It inve­sti­ga­tes the extent to which uni­ver­si­ties are able to implement the StEOP in a way that fulfils its primary purpose: to support students at the beginning of their studies, provide them with ori­en­ta­ti­on through cour­se­work that reflects the expected study workload, and thereby prevent late-stage dropouts.