Attending lectures in person, hybrid or online at a technical university: how do students choose after the pandemic, and what about the outcome?

Abstract In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, students have more choice of how to attend courses than ever before; for a large number of courses at a technical university, they are still able to watch the lectures live online or in recorded format later. We found that interactivity may bring back students into the classroom almost as effectively as withholding alternatives. However, we also found that these attendance modes by themselves have little influence on exam grades. Instead, exam outcomes are more strongly associated with students attitudes and interest. We also found indicators that focussing on live lectures during the running semester (on-campus or online) may be associated with better exam outcomes than intensive preparation phases before exams.