German students go “east”

No, when students in Cologne, Hamburg or Munich jokingly talk about the “Far East”, they do not refer to China, Japan or Korea. What they mean is the eastern part of present-day Germany which – before the Wall came down – used to be a somewhat remote and inaccessible place for most West Germans. These times are long past, and many regions of the former German Democratic Republic have become outright “tiger states”.

Dresden, Leipzig and Magdeburg – to mention just a few – are some of the East German cities that have developed very dynamically during the last decade. The eastern part of Germany can boast of some of the oldest and most highly reputed universities of the country.The quality of education and research was generally very good under communist rule but much of the physical infratructure was outdated and in need of repair.

Since unification the government has invested billions into the modernisation of East German universities. Some, like the one in Leipzig, have received full new campuses. Others were equipped with state-of-the-art libraries, laboratories and computer centres. The housing situation for students has always been better in East than in West Germany, where the government depended too much on the private market. The student hostels from communist times by now have all been modernised and offer accommodation which is both comfortable and affordable.

More and more young people from West Germany are deciding “to go East” for higher studies, being tired of overcrowded lecture halls, poor professor-student ratios and expensive housing in some West German cities. It is a well-known fact that many universities in the East offer a better support infrastructure for international students (like pick-up services or mentor programmes) than their West German counterparts, making them particularly attractive not only for West German “migrants” but also for their fellow students from around the world. 

Nevertheless, some international students, especially from outside Europe, are still wary about studying in the eastern states of Germany, having heard about instances of racist violence. In fact, during the early 1990s some parts of East Germany seemed to be turning into “no-go areas” for foreign-looking people. Fortunately, this trend has been stopped by a combination of awareness building and strict law inforcement. Nowadays, there is little that international students have to be afraid of. Public security is generally very good throughtout Germany, day and night.

If you wish to know how higher education in Germany (both East and West) is marketed by the government today, visit the following link and watch the video (in German with English subtitles):

http://chronicle.com/academicDestinationArticle/Discover-Your-Germany/43/?otd=Y2xpY2t0aHJ1Ojo6YWRobHZpZGVvOjo6YWQ6Z2VybWFueSxhcnRpY2xlOmdlcm1hbnktdG9wcy1nbG9iYWwtZ2F1Z2U6OjphZDpnZXJtYW55LGFydGljbGU6ZGlzY292ZXIteW91ci1nZXJtYW55

Chris

germanstudycentre@gmail.com

German universities on internationalisation path

The new president of the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), Prof. Margret Wintermantel, plans to give an additional boost to the international attractivness of German universities. Those institutions that are prepared to develop new internationally oriented study programmes and, therefore, are particularly successful in attracting foreign students will be provided with additional funds.

Wintermantel seeks to further increase the number of international students in Germany from the current number of 245,000 to 300,000 by the end of the decade. "Winning over foreign students is how we will make friends and partners for the future. What is more, if we fail to increase the number of international students in Germany, we will be unable to maintain our academic system’s excellence in light of demographic changes." The DAAD President pointed out that to attract the best students to Germany would also require making university admissions more straightforward and more flexible and better oriented towards the students’ individual qualifications.

Prof. Margret Wintermantel is former president of Saarland University, one of Germany’s most internationalised institutions of higher education.

Chris
germanstudycentre@gmail.com

(Source: http://www.daad.de/portrait/presse/pressemitteilungen/2012/19484.en.html)

New visa regulations for Indian students

In order to be eligible for a student residence permit in Germany, international students have to prove that they are financially sound enough to finance their stay in the country. At present an amount of roughly 8,000 EUR is considered necessary to cover a student’s living expenses for one year.

Many Indian students from middle-class families opt for educational loans to finance their overseas studies. Previously the German consular authorities in India considered a loan sanction letter from an Indian bank as sufficient to fulfill the visa requirement. Alternatively, proof of a substantial savings account or term deposit was also accepted. When leaving India for Germany, the student had to carry a corresponding demand draft (DD) from his or her bank that could be cashed upon arrival.

Evidence, however, has shown that many Indian students do actually not use this money for their needs but send it back to India as soon as possible in order to save interest on their loans. Hard-pressed for funds, they then end up in a tight corner, having to look for part-time jobs (which are difficult to come by without German language skills) and neglecting their studies.

To remedy this situation, some German consulates in India are making it mandatory for all Indian students to open an account with a German bank at the time of applying for their visa. Required is a so-called “blocked account” which limits the amount of money that can be withdrawn in a certain period of time, thereby, making easy re-transfer of funds to India impossible. Before the student leaves India, the fixed sum of money for the first year has to be paid into the account.

This should not be considered a discriminatory practice. It has long been a standard requirement for students from many other Asian and African countries. There are also advantages for the student: Up till now, many of them had to wait for weeks until the German banks were finally able to cash their DDs. With a blocked account, there is usually immediate access to the money – in a limited amount, though.

Chris
germanstudycentre@gmail.com

Germany faces shortage of skilled labour

In many countries unemployed youth queuing up in front of labour offices is a common sight. Not so in Germany. The country increasingly faces the opposite problem - a shortage of qualified young people willing to take up the occupational challenge in one of the world`s most advanced economies.

According to a recent report in Germany's most popular news magazine "Der Spiegel", experts are warning that the shortage of skilled labour could become an increasingly serious threat to Germany's economy in years to come. Companies in certain industrial sectors are already struggling to fill vacant positions. Demographic developments will only make that worse, as the German population ages and the labor force shrinks.

The government is now debating to ease immigration regulations for highly qualified professionals from non-EU countries even further in order to allow German companies to employ foreign specialists. Earlier this year, a consortium of German foundations and charities set up a cross-party commission to look at the problem. The commission is headed by Armin Laschet, former state integration minister for North Rhine-Westphalia, and former German Defense Minister Peter Struck. Laschet told "Der Spiegel" that "we need to campaign around the world to attract the best minds. That effort already begins, incidentally, with our embassies, consulates and chambers of commerce located abroad."

The commission wants the government to lower bureaucratic hurdles so that companies can hire skilled workers from abroad more easily. In addition, it asks for measures that will make it more straightforward for foreign students to work in Germany and stay in the country after graduation. As of now, non-EU graduates of German university are granted one extra year to find a suitable job in order to obtain a five-year work and residence permit.

Chris
germanstudycentre@gmail.com

Germany’s high-tech state abolishes tuition fees

The German federal state of Baden-Württemberg is home to cutting-edge multinationals like Daimler Benz, Bosch and SAP. It also houses many of Germany’s most higly reputed and competitive universities, some of them several hundred years old and playing in the league of Cambridge and Harvard.

Until this year domestic and international students had to pay 1,000 EUR of tuition years per anno, apart from the usual enrollment fees of around 300 EUR. The new Green / Social Democratic coalition government of the state, recently elected in a landslide victory, has now fullfilled one of its promises voiced during the election campaign and abolished tuition fees from the coming year onwards.

Starting from 2012 you can study in one of the world’s most technologically advanced regions for – literally – peanuts. At least, when it comes to fees. Living expenses, of course, remain a burden on your wallet. You need at least 8,000 EUR per year to survive in the home of Benz and Bosch.

For an overview of current tuition fees in all German federal states please visit the following link (in English):
http://www.studis-online.de/StudInfo/Gebuehren/tuition_fees.php

Chris
germanstudycentre@gmail.com

Germany: More and more study programmes taught in English

It is still a widely held misconception that advanced German language skills are required in order to study at a German university. This is true for most undergraduate programmes and courses in medicine, pharmacy, nursing and law. However, at the master’s and doctoral level the choice of English-taught study programmes is increasing by the day – especially in the engineering and natural sciences but also in business administration and economics.

New English-medium courses generally offer state-of-the-art training in the most future-oriented areas. Thus, the newly opened programmes cover fields like the following:

• bioinformatics
  
• bionics & biomimetics
  
• microbiology & bioengineering
• pharmaceutical biotechnology
• nano technology & neuroscience
• geomatics
• computational engineering & simulation sciences
• medical systems engineering
• optics & photonics
• media & communication technology
• automotive software engineering
• renewable energy systems
• international business administration & foreign trade
• international tourism

If you are interested in and feel qualified for any of these English-taught graduate programmes, drop us a line to get more details.

Having highlighted the widening course offerings in English at public German universities, it remains a fact that Germany is not an anglophone country and probably will not become one in the foreseeable future. Most written information (street signs, train and bus schedules, information on food items in the supermarket etc.) is only given in the local language, and if you ask someone to help you out, you will notice that the vast majorty of Germans speak very rustic English, at best.

Therfore, to get around in daily life and to feel at home in the country you need at least some basic communicative skills in German. The German government has opened language and cultural centres in most countries, including India, that offer excellent and affordable language classes at different levels of proficiency.

Chris
germanstudycentre@gmail.com

Increase in counselling charges

Due to the high inflation rate in India and the ongoing devaluation of the Rupee in relationship to other currencies, the German Study Centre Cochin (DSZ) will have to increase its counselling charges from 15 September 2011 onwards by app. 10 %.

For details please contact us by email.

Chris
germanstudycentre@gmail.com