1. COLLECTION OF DATA: On April 20, 2005, the CAUTG Enrolment Questionnaire was posted on the web at http://www.mun.ca/german/German/CAUTG/questionnaire2005.html and a message was sent to the CAUTG listserv asking the designated individual in each department to fax the completed form to the Enrolment Surveyor by May 1. E-mails and faxes were sent to universities and colleges that had not responded by May 1. Our usual list of 43 universities on Table 1 has been revised. Moncton has been removed and Saint Francis Xavier University and Trinity Western University have been added. Of the 44 universities listed, all 44 replied, for a 100% response rate!
2. RESULTS AND COMPARISONS: Attached are 12 Tables reflecting the results of this year's survey (Table 4) and comparisons based on data from the history file. Three additional tables are also provided this year for the first time, providing information on film courses, class size and undergraduate program enrolments.
Table 1: 15-Year Report of German Enrolments 1990-2005 for 44 Universities with Gain and Loss Comparison of 42 Universities Reporting in Both 2003-2004 and 2004-2005. This is the comprehensive report for 44 universities, with data missing, so there is no point in totalling the columns or providing a graph. The only comparison made here is for the 42 universities that reported in both of the last two years. We actually had 100% reporting in both years, but we have two new universities this year. In 2004-2005, 15 universities show a combined gain of 1147 over the previous year, 25 universities show a combined loss of 1980, and two remained the same, for a net loss of 833 students.
Table 2: Total German Enrolments for 25 Universities That Have Reported Every Year for 15 Years. This is the only category for which we have complete data going back to 1990. Enrolments at these 25 universities are down this year by 744 students. Enrolments from 2003-2004 may have been swollen due to the double cohort in Ontario, with graduates from grades 12 and 13 entering university in the same year. Our enrolment this year is higher than in 2002-2003, the year prior to the double cohort.
Table 3: Ranking of 2003-2004 German Enrolments for 39 Universities. This table represents the ranking for the previous year, 2003-2004, since the university enrolment figures for 2004-2005 are not yet available. German enrolments are ranked twice: 1) by actual size, and 2) by market share.
Table 4: 2004-2005 Enrolment Survey with 44 Universities Reporting. The total German enrolment for this year reported by 44 universities is 21,180. Table 4 shows the enrolment distribution spread over nine categories: 1 Language, 2 Reading, 3 Business German, 4 Culture/German Studies, 5 Culture/German Studies in Translation, 6 Literature, 7 Literature in Translation, 8 Linguistics and 9 Other. This year's survey results have been added to the database for the comparisons below.
Tables 5 - 10 show the enrolment distribution for Language, Reading, Culture/German Studies, Culture/German Studies in Translation, Literature, and Literature in Translation for the thirteen-year period 1992-2005. While distribution figures were in the history file for the year 1990-91, only the total enrolment was available for 1991-92. The tables begin therefore with 1992-93.
26 universities are included in this thirteen-year study. Ottawa and York, who could not be used in Table 2 above because of missing data, have been included in Tables 5-10. Simon Fraser, included in Table 2, has been omitted here, since the breakdown for one year (1995-96) was not in the history file. Since we now have an electronic database, all universities are invited to fill in any data missing from the charts.
Table 5: Total enrolment in language courses. There were 11,469 registrations in language courses, compared to 11,941 last year, for a decrease of 472 registrations.
Tables 5a, 5b, 5c, & 5d show the distribution of enrolment in language courses. The previous labels Beginner, Intermediate 1, Intermediate 2, and Advanced were replaced in 2000-2001 for clarity with 1st year, 2nd year, 3rd year and 4th year.
Table 6: Total Enrolment in Reading Courses. There were 995 registrations in reading courses, compared to 725 last year, for an increase of 270 registrations. The high enrolment course (879) at UBC that caused the jump in 2000-01 to an enrolment of 1272 was the Reading German series, a five-part CD-ROM/Print program developed at UBC and offered on campus as well as on-line. The increase this year is also attributable largely to the enrolment figure from UBC.
Table 7: Total Enrolment in Culture/German Studies. There were 333 registrations in Culture Studies taught in German, compared to 551 last year. Some of the registrations previously reported on this table, beginning with the year 2000-01, have been moved to Table 8. Perhaps more of them should be moved. Departments reporting figures in this category for the years 01-02, 02-03, and 03-04 should check to see whether those figures belong in this category or under Table 8. In other words, if your culture/German studies courses were taught in English, they should not have been reported in this category.
Table 8: Total Enrolment in Culture/German Studies in Translation. There were 1,710 registrations in Culture Studies taught in English, compared to 1,563 last year. This table has also been revised. Several departments had avoided this category, thinking it related to courses that teach translation. Instead, it relates to courses with the same subject matter as category 7, but the materials and lectures are in English. Departments should examine their reporting in these two categories and forward any corrections not only for this year but for previous years.
Table 9: Total Enrolment in Literature. There were 582 registrations in Literature this year, compared to 1059 last year. The drop is due largely to the figures from UBC, which recorded 320 in this category last year and 0 this year.
Table 10: Total Enrolment in Literature in Translation. There were 825 registrations in Literature in Translation this year, compared to 519 last year. UBC and Victoria both have large enrolments this year in this category.
Table 11: Colleges. We received answers from 8 colleges and CÉGEPs.
Table 12: Graduate Enrolments. 11 universities reported graduate students this year. In 2004-2005 there were 68 M.A. students and 38 Ph.D. students, for a total of 106 graduate students, compared to 114 the previous year. The M.A.s decreased by 8 and the Ph.D.s stayed the same, for an overall decrease of 8 graduate students.
By faculty request, information has also been collected on teaching complement, factors affecting enrolment, majors and minors, degrees granted, and film courses. Work is well underway on all these topics. Information on Film Courses (Table 13), Average Class Size - 1st-year Language (Table 14), and Undergraduate Program Enrolments (Table 15) follows:
Table 13: Film Courses at 13 Universities. 13 departments have reported offering film courses. In 2004-05, film courses were offered at 12 universities, with a total enrolment of 868, compared to 2003-04, when film courses were offered at 10 universities with a total enrolment of 1059. The drop in total enrolment this year is due primarily to the drop in the large film course at Dalhousie.
Table 14: Average Class Size - 1st -year Language for 39 Universities. From 39 universities providing data on this question, the class enrolments in first-year language ranged from 13 to 49, with a median of 24 and a mean of 26. Guelph provides the information that they taught two sections of Introductory German I (150/2 = 75/section) and two sections of Introductory German II (45/2 = 22.5/section), for an overall average of 49.
Table 15: Undergraduate Program Enrolments for 32 Universities. The information is incomplete. Some departments are not able to track program enrolments, and some will not know total degrees awarded until June. Departments are urged to forward numbers as soon as they become available.
3. SUMMARY. After three consecutive years of growth, enrolments are down this year, but still show a gain over 2002-2003 (see Table 2). Of 42 universities reporting in both 2003-2004 and 2004-2005, 15 universities show a combined gain of 1147 over the previous year, 25 show a combined loss of 1980, and 2 remain the same, for a net loss of 833 students, following gains of 1316 in 2003-2004, 1665 in 2002-2003 and 763 in 2001-2002 (see Table 1). There are gains in reading courses, German studies in translation, and literature in translation. Language enrolments may have been swollen in 2003-2004 because of the double cohort in Ontario (graduates of grades 12 and 13 entering university in the same year). It is encouraging to note that language enrolments this year are higher than in 2002-2003, the year before the double cohort.
Every attempt has been made to supply an accurate report. Figures deviating substantially from previous years have been followed up. The most common error continues to be courses reported in the wrong category (culture vs culture in translation) or in a different category from previous years. Departments are encouraged to be consistent in their reporting. While inconsistency in the choice of categories will not affect the total enrolment, it will defeat any attempt to track the growth of particular categories. Please check your own institution's figures for accuracy. This report reflects data received by 3pm Thursday, May 26, 2005.
Respectfully submitted,
Marcella Rollmann
Enrolment Surveyor
26 May 2005, revised 18 July 2005
marcella@mun.ca