Introduction:
Studying at university plays a significant role in shaping a healthy lifestyle, as it provides students with access to knowledge about healthy nutrition, physical activity, and the prevention of lifestyle diseases. We examined how the academic environment influences health-related habits in a sample of 60 students with different academic focuses.

Methods:
University students were divided into three groups (n:20): 1. "Sports" – a program focused on performance-based sports physical activity (PA); 2. "Physio" – a program focused on healthy, therapeutic PA; 3. "Other" – a program without a focus on PA. The level of physical activity was monitored using the standardized International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ), and health-related lifestyle habits were assessed using the Health-Related Behavior Scale (HRBS). To compare the differences between the groups, we used the ANOVA statistical test and post-hoc tests. Correlation analysis was performed using Spearman's correlation.

Results:
Based on the analysis of the IPAQ questionnaire using the ANOVA test and subsequent post-hoc tests, we found a significant difference in the level of PA between the "Sports" group and the "Other" group (p < 0.001; Sports: ø11834 Metabolic Equivalent of Tasks (METs)/week ± 5538.278; Other: ø4345 METs/week ± 4345.25 ). The "Physio" group showed a level of ø 5665 METs/week ± 3514.593. We applied the same data analysis method when evaluating the HRBS questionnaire. Based on the achieved scores, we found the healthiest behavior model in the "Physio" group (ø 69.87 ± 5.28594) and the worst in the "Sports" group (ø 67.03 ± 10.09113). The "Other" group achieved an average score of 68.17 ± 68.17273. Using Spearman's correlation, we confirmed a low negative relationship between the level of physical activity and BMI (p < 0.001; R: -0.2798).

Conclusion:
The results of the analysis indicate that the field of study has a significant impact on the physical activity behavior and lifestyle of university students. Students in health, physical education, and sports-related programs exhibit higher levels of physical activity and healthier lifestyle habits compared to students in other fields. The findings suggest the need for greater integration of physical activities into all study programs, which would promote physical activity and overall health among students.
With the support of the projects VEGA 1/0382/24, Prevalence and diversification of musculoskeletal disorders in university students in relation to their health-related behaviors.

Keywords: Education, physical activity, healthy lifestyle.