When pondering the question where to
study abroad, students tend to focus their attention on the results of
international rankings. In this regard, I think, a word of caution is
necessary. These rankings will rarely be able to tell a student which
institution serves him best.
Diversity, in the German context,
mainly refers to the different types of universities, the size of institutions
and important aspects of their locations. Starting with the last point, an
aspiring young student from the Indian metropolis of Mumbai may be less than
happy when she suddenly finds herself dropped into a German small town surrounded
by idyllic countryside - with empty sidewalks most of the day and three shops to choose from. This is not an unrealistic scenario, as quite a number
of German universities are situated in locations that big-city dwellers would
describe as “rural”.
Of more importance, however, are pronounced
differences in the academic orientation and size of universities in Germany .
Before you start applying, you should be familiar with the differences between
general universities (UNI), universities of technology (TH) and universities of
applied sciences (FH or HS). If you are heading towards a career in academia
and research, the first two types of institutions are your places of choice, as
only they are entitled to award doctoral degrees. If you are more interested in
the application of knowledge and technology to the solution of concrete
problems (e.g. as posed by industrial work processes), then the third type of
universities will offer you a variety of interesting study programmes.
The size of institutions can also make a big
difference, especially for international students. Don't underestimate the
factor of culture shock which everybody experiences who decides to live and study
in a far-away land. Adjusting to a new lifestyle and different academic
conventions can rarely be achieved without strong support from teaching staff,
administrative personnel and fellow students. It is precisely the nature of
human relations that tends to vary substantially between large-scale bureaucratic
structures and smaller institutions which are closer to schools in size. Making
friends and having a close rapport with professors and lecturers are easier in
a less anonymous environment where you do not meet different people everyday. Studies
have shown that developing emotionally satisfying human relationships
contributes a lot to study success.
When you look at international
rankings, it is mainly the large general and technical universities in Germany
that make it to top positions. What a biased picture! Several years of experience as an educational counsellor
have provided me with ample evidence that many international students tend to feel
lost at universities with 30,000 or more students and complain about a lack of
personalised guidance and supervision, whereas those enrolled at educational
institutions that are not listed in any rankings usually enjoy excellent guidance and graduate with above-average marks.
Which leads me to the last point that I
would like to emphasise here. It is your individual academic performance and
overall qualification that will eventually decide your professional future and
not the name or reputation of any university – at least in Germany and many other European countries. If it is the “old continent” where you wish
to work at least for some years after your graduation, choose the university
that suits you best and not the one that
excels in rankings, unless – of course – both of these factors happen to
overlap…
Chris
germanstudycentre@gmail.com