by Dr Nathalie Mather-L’Huillier
Why Study A Masters degree in Germany?
Germany is well-known the world over for the quality of its education
system and not just in engineering. As nicknamed by the agency
responsible for promoting Germany as a study destination (DAAD), Germany
is the “Land of Ideas”. With nearly 2.5 million students throughout the
country and across the whole range of subject areas, it is one of the
largest higher education provider in Europe as well as one of the most
popular
study abroad destinations in the world
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University system in Germany
A competitive fee structure, an increasing number of masters
delivered fully (or partly) in English, higher positions in
international rankings and a growing international postgraduate
population means that Germany is a good option for masters study.
Another characteristic of the higher education sector in Germany is a
strong emphasis on student mobility and students are encouraged to take
internships or make good use of exchange opportunities during their
studies, This also applies at masters level. With a now shorter Bologna
bachelor (3 years), study abroad opportunities are as important at
masters level in Germany.
The German Higher Education system is not centrally coordinated and
each of the 16 Federal States has its own higher education laws. German
universities are autonomous in terms of administration and management.
Each institution decides on the areas it wants to teach and makes
admissions decisions (as in the UK, for example), setting their own
regulations and entry requirements so it is advisable to check each
institution you may be considering for your masters study.
There are four types of institutions in Germany which offers masters degrees:
- Universities, including Technische Universität, also known as TU,
are research-oriented and offer programmes in a wide variety of
subjects. There are around 100 universities and most of these are public
institutions.
- Universities of Applied Science or Fachhochschulen are
practice-orientated and offer courses mainly in engineering, business
administration, social sciences and design. They often have excellent
relationships with employers which will provide internships, supervision
during masters dissertations and other opportunities for professional
development. Amongst 200 of this type, you will find both public or
private universities of applied science in Germany.
- Colleges of art, film and music (over 50 institutions)
- Institutions supported by religious organisations (partly state-funded)
Fees/Funding
Masters tuition fees and miscellaneous fees
In 2005, a law was passed allowing universities to charge tuition
fees. Not all States opted to start applying tuition fees but for those
which do the fees remain low. The currency of Germany is the Euro (€).
Fees for masters degrees are made up of several components:
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- Tuition fees (per semester):
- €0-€650, for public institutions (although professional and executive masters may carry higher fees)
- Up to several thousand euros per semester for private institutions (on par with other countries like the US)
- Semester contribution (“Semesterbeitrag”, an admin/student services
fee, often including a transport pass for local area): €40-€270
- Health Insurance (per annum): varies depending on institution but
can be around €280/semester; however if you have a part-time job this is
may provide a health insurance cover which is adequate. The law states
that all students must have health insurance for the duration of your
course (including any extension, up to 14 semesters) or up to a maximum
age of 30. This means that, under these conditions, you have access to
public health insurance at subsidised rates. For students over 30, a
private insurance cover will have to be arranged by the student. The
student services office (Studentenwerk) of your institution can advise
you on this and on whether you need additional cover should you
undertake fieldwork or an internship.
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Scholarships and Financial Assistance
Financial assistance for graduate students may be available in the
form of scholarships from external agencies, such as DAAD. Examples
include:
Federal grants and loans may also be available, although you’ll have
to check whether you are eligible. Similarly, some of the federal loans
are only offered as hardship loans (ie if you suddenly find yourself
unable to pay your fees, if you are in a state which has tuition fees). A
good example is the tuition fee loans in Bavaria (which are available
through an idependent bank), for more information, visit:
http://www.studieren-in-bayern.de/darlehen.aspx.
International students with a
student visa
who are studying for a full-time degree may work up 120 days (or 240
half-days every year. While this may not be sufficient to fully support
you during your masters degree, it may provide a useful income.
Applying and Admissions
Masters applications can be either made directly to the universities
using their own in-house (online) application form or by using a system
called uni-assist. This system is more than just an online form and
provides a screening service to determine the suitability of applicants’
bachelor degree to gain admissions onto masters degrees both for German
and international applicants). To find out more about uni-assist and
which German institutions use uni-assist, please
click here.
Entry Requirements
Germany, like many other European countries, signed up to the Bologna
process which allows better alignment of the different degrees in
Europe and beyond. One of the most notable aspects of this is that
Germany now offers a 3-tiered system, whereby a bachelor leads to a
masters which in turn leads to a
PhD.
This means that you will require a bachelor degree equivalent of the
German bachelor to gain access to a masters. Depending on the subject,
you will have to demonstrate a minimum number of credits in specific
areas you studied at undergraduate level. Often, individual academic
sections will then examine inidividually how these credits relate to the
admission requirements for the programme you have applied for.
Professional masters degrees often require work experience.
Some institutions may have two levels of requirements, one for
application and one for enrollment (which of course is higher that at
application). This is to allow applicants to improve their language
skills prior to starting their degree.
For masters’ degrees delivered exclusively in English, there is normally no German language requirements. For example,
Freie Universität Berlin
has over 20 programmes available and no German language certificate is
required as part of the application process. Of course, if English is
not your first language, you will have to demonstrate your proficiency
in English, either through a certificate or by showing that you have
been taught in English at undergraduate level.
For masters degrees delivered exclusively in German or partly in
German, proficiency in the language will have to be demonstrated through
either TestDaf (German as a foreign language) or DSH1 (
Sprachprüfung für den Hochschulzugang or German language examination for admission to a German higher education institution).
Masters Structure
So a Masters in Germany is called a “Masters”! They take between two
and six semesters, the most common case being 2 years. Depending on the
subject, graduates earn either a Master of Arts (MA) or a Master of
Science (MSc) degree. They are sometimes referred to a Magister which is
the name of the pre-Bologna qualification. Masters can be consecutive
or non-consecutive:
- A consecutive masters program is the continuation of a completed
bachelor in the same field, allowing students to acquire knowledge and
skills in more depth.
- A non-consecutive masters requires a bachelor’s degree, but not
necessarily in the same field (although you would expect it to be in a
related subject area). This allows students to acquire new skills and
knowledge which complements or broadens their existing undergraduate
qualification.
- Professional masters are offered in vocational subject areas such as
nursing, engineering, education. They are practice-orientated,
providing practical work experience.
- Masters by Research are not really a well established concept in
Germany and there are no Masters by Research available. If you are
interested in research, why not look into a PhD?
Course content
To be awarded a masters, you’ll require 120 ECTS credits, of which 30
will be obtained through the final dissertation or thesis. Masters
programmes are taught as a mixture of lectures and seminars as well as
internships, fieldwork and group projects, if required by your
particular course. You may have to present your thesis to a committee or
an audience.
At the end of your programme, you will get a final mark which is most
commonly based on a reverse 5-point scale, 1 being the best and 4.0 or
over being a fail. You will also be given qualificative grade such as
“Sehr Gut” or “Gut” depending on your numerical grade.
Employability and jobs
It is worth making good use of your university’s career/employability
service as they will have good contacts with employers and will hosts
events, such as careers fairs where you can meet companies (both local
and multinationals) recruiting high-caliber graduates.
The Germany economy is historically based on industry. However, the
service-oriented sector is growing rapidly, leaving a gap in killed
labour resulting in many German industries, such as IT and sales and
marketing, scrambling for qualified employees. Combining a strong
industrial and high-tech sector with this, the top five German
industries are biotechnology & genetics, information technology
& multimedia, finance and marketing, engineering and health
services.
More information click Here
http://www.findamasters.com
