This paper draws on a larger longitudinal study and is based on 1775 questionnaire responses from five questionnaires and students in four cohorts of students in Applied Physics and Electrical Engineering. Two cohorts studied in a traditional setting whereas two cohorts followed the CDIO curriculum. The research questions concern differences in perceptions of workload, opportunities to cooperate, influence and interact with teachers between cohorts and over time. The first three cohorts perceived the workload as heaviest in the third year and the last cohort during their fourth year. Female students experienced heavier workloads than male students, but an interaction effect showed that females of last two cohorts experienced lower workloads than the first two cohorts. Studying in groups peaked during the third year. Later cohorts consistently experienced better opportunities to cooperate with peer students. Opportunities to influence the studies and having contacts with teachers increased over time and the last cohort had best such experiences. The last cohort experienced a stable pattern of significantly less social isolation, while the other cohorts experienced more variation and more social isolation. Students identified themselves more, were more proud of studying and had more faith in the quality of the program over time.
