Learners’ characteristics and the mastery of digital education during the COVID-19 pandemic in students of a medical faculty in Germany

Background In response to the spread of the coronavirus, educational institutions have been closed and digital education has become a new teaching method to ensure the continuity of medical education. Since this format was a new form of learning for students at medical faculties in Germany, little is known about the perception of it and the factors that contribute to successful mastery. The current study aimed to analyze students’ learning experiences during the first online semester and to identify associations between learners’ characteristics and enjoyment, mastery experiences, as well as the perceived stress level. Methods In this cross-sectional study, students of a medical faculty from Germany answered an online questionnaire including information about perceptions towards digital education and learners’ characteristics (study skills and dispositions). Data were analyzed using multivariate linear regression analysis. Results In total, 383 students responded to the online survey. A majority of students felt at least somewhat worse about their studies compared to before the pandemic. Success of study tasks was related to preferences for cooperative learning (B = − 0.063, p < .001) and success of study organization was associated to the use of metacognitive learning strategies (B = 0.019, p = .04). Enjoyment of studying in times of digital education was positively related to the use of metacognitive strategies (B = 0.049, p = .04) and self-efficacy (B = 0.111, p = .02). The perceived stress was influenced by cognitive strategies (B = 0.401, p = .02) and test anxiety (B = 0.466, p < .001). Conclusions Although students perceive digital teaching as a good alternative for big courses, those with low self-efficacy beliefs and low self-regulation have problems in coping with the demands of this learning format and need further support.