A process for preparing (meth)acrylic esters of N-hydroxyalkylated lactams, in which cyclic N-hydroxyalkylated lactams in which R 1 is C 1 -C 5 -alkylene, or C 2 -C 20 -alkylene interrupted by one or more oxygen and/or sulfur atoms and/or one or more substituted or unsubstituted imino groups and/or by one or more cycloalkyl, - -, -O O-, - O-, -O -, -O - or - O- groups, where the radicals mentioned may each be substituted by aryl, alkyl, aryloxy, alkyloxy, heteroatoms and/or heterocycles, with the proviso that R 1 must not have any atom other than a carbon atom directly adjacent to the lactam carbonyl group, R 2 is C 1 -C 20 -alkylene, C 5 -C 12 -cycloalkylene, C 6 -C 12 -arylene, or C 2 -C 20 -alkylene interrupted by one or more oxygen and/or sulfur atoms and/or one or more substituted or unsubstituted imino groups and/or by one or more cycloalkyl, - -, -O O-, - O-, -O -, -O - or - O- groups, where the radicals mentioned may each be substituted by aryl, alkyl, aryloxy, alkyloxy, heteroatoms and/or heterocycles, or R 2 -OH is a group of the formula -[X i] k -H, k is from 1 to 50 and X i, for each i = 1 to k, may each independently be selected from the group of -CH 2 -CH 2 -O-, -CH 2 -CH(CH 3)-O-, -CH(CH 3)-CH 2 -O-, -CH 2 -C(CH 3)2-O-, - C(CH 3) 2 -CH 2 -O-, -CH 2 -CH 2 -CH 2 -O-, -CH 2 -CH 2 -CH 2 -CH 2 -O-, -CH 2 -CHVin-O-, -CHVin-CH 2 -O-, -CH 2 -CHPh-O- and - CHPh-CH 2 -O-, in which Ph is phenyl and Vin is vinyl, in the presence of at least one catalyst selected from the group consisting of alkali metal hydroxides, alkaline earth metal hydroxides and metal acetylacetonates and of a polymerization inhibitor, is esterified with (meth)acrylic acid or transesterified with at least one (meth)acrylic ester. R 1 is C 1 -C 5 -alkylene, or C 2 -C 20 -alkylene interrupted by one or more oxygen and/or sulfur atoms and/or one or more substituted or unsubstituted imino groups and/or by one or more cycloalkyl, - -, -O O-, - O-, -O -, -O - or - O- groups, where the radicals mentioned may each be substituted by aryl, alkyl, aryloxy, alkyloxy, heteroatoms and/or heterocycles, with the proviso that R 1 must not have any atom other than a carbon atom directly adjacent to the lactam carbonyl group, R 2 is C 1 -C 20 -alkylene, C 5 -C 12 -cycloalkylene, C 6 -C 12 -arylene, or C 2 -C 20 -alkylene interrupted by one or more oxygen and/or sulfur atoms and/or one or more substituted or unsubstituted imino groups and/or by one or more cycloalkyl, - -, -O O-, - O-, -O -, -O - or - O- groups, where the radicals mentioned may each be substituted by aryl, alkyl, aryloxy, alkyloxy, heteroatoms and/or heterocycles, or R 2 -OH is a group of the formula -[X i] k -H, k is from 1 to 50 and X i, for each i = 1 to k, may each independently be selected from the group of -CH 2 -CH 2 -O-, -CH 2 -CH(CH 3)-O-, -CH(CH 3)-CH 2 -O-, -CH 2 -C(CH 3)2-O-, - C(CH 3) 2 -CH 2 -O-, -CH 2 -CH 2 -CH 2 -O-, -CH 2 -CH 2 -CH 2 -CH 2 -O-, -CH 2 -CHVin-O-, -CHVin-CH 2 -O-, -CH 2 -CHPh-O- and - CHPh-CH 2 -O-, in which Ph is phenyl and Vin is vinyl, in the presence of at least one catalyst selected from the group consisting of alkali metal hydroxides, alkaline earth metal hydroxides and metal acetylacetonates and of a polymerization inhibitor, is esterified with (meth)acrylic acid or transesterified with at least one (meth)acrylic ester.