Scholarships are an important source of support for many students during their studies - both financially and in terms of ideas. But who benefits from these grants? And what difference do scholarships make to the course and success of studies? The Leibniz Institute for Educational Trajectories (LIfBi) is now investigating these questions in the STIPEND research project (“Scholarships: Profiles of sponsored students and empirical evidence on distribution and benefits in the German higher education context”). For the first time, it comprehensively examines the significance of state-funded scholarships in the German higher education system.
“Scholarships are supposed to provide more equal opportunities - but we hardly know who they actually reach,” explains project leader Dr. Christina Haas. The researchers at the Leibniz Institute for Educational Trajectories therefore want to create a comprehensive socio-demographic profile of the scholarship holders. What social background do the scholarship holders have? What do they study? And what is their educational history to date? The aim is to draw conclusions about underrepresented student groups.
The role universities play in awarding scholarships will be analyzed using the Deutschlandstipendium, which was introduced a few years ago. Here, part of the funding is provided by companies, while the universities are responsible for selecting the scholarship holders.
STIPEND also investigates the short and long-term effects of a scholarship. For example, what impact does the funding have on the course and success of studies or the transition to the job market?
Basis for fairer student support
The central question is always whether scholarships really create more equal opportunities, e.g. by primarily supporting students who cannot be supported by their parents - or whether they reinforce existing inequalities because it is primarily students from privileged backgrounds who receive scholarships. "We know from international research that financial support can indeed make a difference. We want to examine these effects in detail for the first time in the German context," explains Dr. Christina Haas. "Our aim is to create an empirical basis for policymakers, universities and funding organizations so that study grants can ultimately be designed more fairly."
In their investigations, the researchers use existing data from the student survey of the German Center for Higher Education Research and Science Studies (DZHW), the starting cohort 5 (students) of the National Educational Panel Study (NEPS) and data from the Federal Statistical Office. STIPEND is funded by the Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR, formerly BMBF) and runs until April 2028.
More informationen about the project