- Many first-class degrees at higher education institutions in Rhineland-Palatinate
Every fourth graduate from a university in Rhineland-Palatinate had a top-grade degree in 2023. The average final grade was 2.1, an improvement of 0.2 points over the past decade, according to the Statistical Office in Bad Ems. However, students performed slightly worse than in the two COVID-19 exam years of 2021 and 2022, when the average was around 2.0.
Business Administration topped the list of subjects with the most first-time graduates, such as bachelor's degrees, with around 1,300 graduates. "German Studies/German" came in second with nearly 670 degrees, followed by "Police/Constitutional Protection," with around 500 graduates qualifying for police service.
Business Administration also led the list of advanced degrees, such as master's degrees, with approximately 1,500 graduates. "Primary School/Primary Education Pedagogy" followed at a significant distance with around 610 degrees.
Share of failed exams above COVID-19 level
Around 24,600 students participated in final exams at their universities in 2023. Approximately eight percent of examinees failed, it was reported.
This means that the share of final exams not passed has risen slightly above the COVID-19 level: it was particularly low at around four to six percent from 2020 to 2022 and is now returning to normal. In previous years, the share fluctuated between around nine and ten percent.
The average final grade might provide interesting insights when compared to the statistics of failed exams from 2023. Despite improvements in grades over the past decade, the share of failed exams has slightly surpassed the COVID-19 level.
