Based on a survey of student teachers (N = 238), this article analyses the understanding of community in university teaching and the perception of course evaluations as facets of student participation. The results show that although courses are perceived as fair and tend to be co-operative, students only perceive limited opportunities to help shape them. Evaluations are seen as useful at an organisational level, but their direct effectiveness for students' own study conditions is sometimes doubted. Against this background, the article discusses impulses for the further development of studying and teaching and points out the need for further research.