This article explores motivational changes of first-year students enrolled on German degree courses at two major UK universities. It reports on the qualitative data obtained by a longitudinal mixed-methods study, and focuses on the interplay between students' motivation and the higher education learning environment. In particular, the article aims to shed light on the significant decrease in intrinsic motivation experienced by students over the course of the first year. The qualitative data illustrate the importance of the right level of challenge for maintaining students' intrinsic motivation. It is suggested that there are three areas in which the level of challenge in the respective German degree courses may not be geared to students' needs: reading German literature, writing essays in German and grammar tuition. The article explores the reasons why students are struggling in these areas, and concludes by outlining pedagogical suggestions for how to counteract decreasing motivation during the first year at university.