Studying in the Middle Ages and in the Early Modern Age

Admission, matriculation and expulsion

“Male, honest, Christian” – this could be a short characterization of students at the medieval and early modern universities. What requirements did the universities’ statutes ask from new admissions and how were these norms handled in practice?

The admission to the university took place through matriculation. This was not a purely administrative act for the statistical recording of students, but was the foundation of a person’s membership in the university and the subjection to its jurisdiction. This is why the registers (Matrikel) included the names of the students, but also those of the teachers, other employees as well as of artisans who worked for the university outside of the regular guild laws. The registers also became continuously more sophisticated and representative.