# Living costs for an international student in Germany



## abcdef

Hi!
I'm about to finish High School and I'm currently looking for opportunities for me to study abroad. I live in Southeast Europe but my country is not in the European Union. I have great grades but as I went a little further on my research I found that there are no scholarships offered in Germany. So I came across this place and I was hoping that I could get help from people in here who live in this country and are able to give me a better reply than Google searches.

I wanted to know, as this is the case that I'm unable to find a concrete answer for, is the cost of tuition FREE for every student in Germany, whether they are internationals or not, coming from European Union countries or not? I know just the basics of German (the grammar rules, pronunciation, etc.) but what I know is far from ideal and I can't study in German with my knowledge. I was hoping to know if there are universities that teach in English in Germany, but that don't charge students, or charge very low amounts of money per year, just like most universities?

Next, it might be kind of general, but can anyone give me any general ideas of how much will it cost me to live there? I come from an economically ruined country and I guess I'll be on a very limited budget. I am a saving-person and I really know how to manage money but from what I've been reading online, the same sources that state that university is mostly free, also say that the living expenses are high and that's what "scares me off"... On how much will I be able to live if I'll stay in a modest, single room apartment and cook on my own?

Oh and also I wanted to know, I have no idea which cities are expensive and which not, (although I like Stuttgart and Berlin, not sure about the others), and how easy will it be for me to find places where to settle down and accommodate myself since I don't know anyone there?? The fact that I don't know the language is what worries me the most ...
Thanks though!


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## abcdef

Oh and also can you tell me which are the most friendly cities and that have a moderately big number of students? The fact that I don't know the language is what worries me the most ... Do you advise me to take intensive courses this summer in my home country, or forget about this if universities teach in English too and the costs aren't high? In contrary, if I go to Germany and actually take the intensive language course there, will I get any help from the country? That's what I think I've read, and I'm aware that I will lose a year if I do that.


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## abcdef

Bump. Anyone?


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## MrTweek

Student fees are the same for everyone, no matter what nationality. In most states this means it is free.
You will still have to pay some administrative fee of 50-200 EUR per semester, depending on the University. In return you will usually get subsidized food and free public transport.

There are some universities that offer courses in English language. This has no effect on the costs (as long as they are public). I don't know which ones though.

Cost of living depends a lot on the city where you'll move to, especially the rent.
Cheapest places are in the east (including Berlin, Dresden, Leipzig) where you can find a place to live for less than 200 EUR/month.
Most expensive places are cities like Munich, Hamburg, Cologne, Heidelberg where you will most likely pay more than 300 EUR/month. Small towns and rural areas are usually cheaper than big cities.

Having an apartment for yourself will be slightly higher. Student often share apartments (but not rooms) to save money.
Some universities offer cheap accommodation as well, but usually only slightly cheaper than private renting.
If you know basic German, you can check WG Zimmer Wohnungen Wohnungssuche WG Suche WG Wohnung vermieten WG Nachmieter Zwischenmiete : WG-Gesucht.de to get an idea of prices in different cities. Language barrier won't be too much of a problem for finding a place to live. There are many international students so there are non-German speaking flat shares as well.

Food and whatever you need to survive, can be as low as 150-200 EUR/month if you are as good in saving money are you claim 

About the language: The better your German is, the easier it will be for you. Even if you study in English, you will need German every now and then. So it's surely not a bad idea to learn it, if you can.
If money is an issue, there are free ways to study languages on your own. Maybe not as effective as a good teacher, but it still works.
Also, many German universities have unlimited free language classes for enrolled students. Others offer them for very cheap. That might be worth some research.

Let me know if you have more specific questions.


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## abcdef

MrTweek said:


> Student fees are the same for everyone, no matter what nationality. In most states this means it is free.
> You will still have to pay some administrative fee of 50-200 EUR per semester, depending on the University. In return you will usually get subsidized food and free public transport.
> 
> There are some universities that offer courses in English language. This has no effect on the costs (as long as they are public). I don't know which ones though.
> 
> Cost of living depends a lot on the city where you'll move to, especially the rent.
> Cheapest places are in the east (including Berlin, Dresden, Leipzig) where you can find a place to live for less than 200 EUR/month.
> Most expensive places are cities like Munich, Hamburg, Cologne, Heidelberg where you will most likely pay more than 300 EUR/month. Small towns and rural areas are usually cheaper than big cities.
> 
> Having an apartment for yourself will be slightly higher. Student often share apartments (but not rooms) to save money.
> Some universities offer cheap accommodation as well, but usually only slightly cheaper than private renting.
> If you know basic German, you can check to get an idea of prices in different cities. Language barrier won't be too much of a problem for finding a place to live. There are many international students so there are non-German speaking flat shares as well.
> 
> Food and whatever you need to survive, can be as low as 150-200 EUR/month if you are as good in saving money are you claim
> 
> About the language: The better your German is, the easier it will be for you. Even if you study in English, you will need German every now and then. So it's surely not a bad idea to learn it, if you can.
> If money is an issue, there are free ways to study languages on your own. Maybe not as effective as a good teacher, but it still works.
> Also, many German universities have unlimited free language classes for enrolled students. Others offer them for very cheap. That might be worth some research.
> 
> Let me know if you have more specific questions.


Woah, really, that's awesome! It definitely got my hopes up!!!
The rent part is really cool, thankfully the website had the option to switch it to English so I could understand everything, anyways, that now is not my concern anymore, thanks for covering it up. 

My dilemma is that I really like the idea of living in "not in the center of the city" or in suburbs, I like nature and all, but -i know this might sound stupid-, does the life, people, viable facilities to me, differ greatly from the inner part of the city, to the outer ones/suburbs? I come from a country where pretty much everyone is "invading" the cities because of how the "rural" and suburb areas are overlooked. Can you actually just define the "rural German area" term? Again, not trying to sound greedy or anything, but just wanting to know what to not expect, even though I am not really that disturbed. I just mostly worried about the quality of education, if it does differ from central areas to the suburbs, and if not, and choosing to go to a public university which is more in the center of the city, how far do I have to walk to reach public transportation, or are they pretty common almost everywhere?

Moving on, you mentioned that I have to pay administrative fees every semester to the university (I plan on going to a public university), and that actually is nothing compared to the stratospheric prices in the US, where I had initially planned to go. What do you mean by "In return you will usually get subsidized food and free public transport."? Do I get like a card that I can show in grocery stores and get discounts, or is the subsidization available only if I eat at the university? I mean can I get discounts on independent food purchases that I make? The transportation part sounds awesome, really.

I am young and of course I would really love to learn the language, and do plan to do so when I'm there, but I just feel like even if I learn German now, 1,5 years before leaving my country, I might not be able to understand the leisure as good as I can when it is taught in English, a language that I've been familiar with for years. Is there any way that I can somehow switch, I mean, do the first two years in English, and if I've mastered German enough I can take my courses in German?

And last, I wanted to know, are foreign students allowed to work? Part time I guess? Even if I don't know German? Or do I have to wait for this?

Thanks a lot, this sounds too good to be true  !


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## ALKB

abcdef said:


> Woah, really, that's awesome! It definitely got my hopes up!!!
> The rent part is really cool, thankfully the website had the option to switch it to English so I could understand everything, anyways, that now is not my concern anymore, thanks for covering it up.
> 
> My dilemma is that I really like the idea of living in "not in the center of the city" or in suburbs, I like nature and all, but -i know this might sound stupid-, does the life, people, viable facilities to me, differ greatly from the inner part of the city, to the outer ones/suburbs? I come from a country where pretty much everyone is "invading" the cities because of how the "rural" and suburb areas are overlooked. Can you actually just define the "rural German area" term? Again, not trying to sound greedy or anything, but just wanting to know what to not expect, even though I am not really that disturbed. I just mostly worried about the quality of education, if it does differ from central areas to the suburbs, and if not, and choosing to go to a public university which is more in the center of the city, how far do I have to walk to reach public transportation, or are they pretty common almost everywhere?
> 
> Moving on, you mentioned that I have to pay administrative fees every semester to the university (I plan on going to a public university), and that actually is nothing compared to the stratospheric prices in the US, where I had initially planned to go. What do you mean by "In return you will usually get subsidized food and free public transport."? Do I get like a card that I can show in grocery stores and get discounts, or is the subsidization available only if I eat at the university? I mean can I get discounts on independent food purchases that I make? The transportation part sounds awesome, really.
> 
> I am young and of course I would really love to learn the language, and do plan to do so when I'm there, but I just feel like even if I learn German now, 1,5 years before leaving my country, I might not be able to understand the leisure as good as I can when it is taught in English, a language that I've been familiar with for years. Is there any way that I can somehow switch, I mean, do the first two years in English, and if I've mastered German enough I can take my courses in German?
> 
> And last, I wanted to know, are foreign students allowed to work? Part time I guess? Even if I don't know German? Or do I have to wait for this?
> 
> Thanks a lot, this sounds too good to be true  !



This might help to find something:

http://www.study-in.de/en/

As far as I know, you will need to show maintenance funds for a year in order to get a student visa. I don't know the exact sum but I think it was around € 8000. This money has to be kept in a special German account that only lets you withdraw 1/12 of the total sum per month. (At least that was the case when I last checked the rules.)


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## abcdef

ALKB said:


> This might help to find something:
> 
> 
> 
> As far as I know, you will need to show maintenance funds for a year in order to get a student visa. I don't know the exact sum but I think it was around € 8000. This money has to be kept in a special German account that only lets you withdraw 1/12 of the total sum per month. (At least that was the case when I last checked the rules.)


Do I just need to have the money in the account when they "check it", or once I load them to my account and they verify it, they put it on hold and let me spend just 1/12 of it monthly??
Thanks for the link.


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## MrTweek

*About the country/rural thing:*Compared to most other countries, Germany does not have many big cities. We are 82 million people, but the biggest city (Berlin) is only 3.5m. Next is Hamburg with 1.8m.
Most of the population is spread into hundreds of medium and small cities.
So, if you don't pick any of the, let's say 10 largest cities, you will easily be able to live close to nature and still commute less than 30 minutes to the centre.
Living completely out of a city might be a bit harder as there will be less students and less foreigners and thus less people who speak English. I sure you can find a way in between though 
Public transport is probably one of the best in the world, in some regions better in some worse. Any city with a tram network will make it easier.



> Do I get like a card that I can show in grocery stores and get discounts, or is the subsidization available only if I eat at the university? I mean can I get discounts on independent food purchases that I make? The transportation part sounds awesome, really.


No, this counts only for food in the university. Also depends on the university, but where I studied, I could get a full meal for about 1.20 EUR, which is almost cheaper than cooking for yourself.
You get a student id that gives you discounts for things like cinema, swimming pools and the like, but not for living costs.



> Is there any way that I can somehow switch, I mean, do the first two years in English, and if I've mastered German enough I can take my courses in German?


This is generally possible but the universities make their own rules. It's always possible to switch to a different course and very easy it the content is the same.



> And last, I wanted to know, are foreign students allowed to work? Part time I guess? Even if I don't know German? Or do I have to wait for this?


As far as I know can work part time. You won't need German skills for that, but it'll be much harder to find a job without.


I guess the most complicated part for you will be to find a course and a city that suits you. The website that ALKB posted should be very helpful.


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## abcdef

Thanks for the reply, again!
After giving a shot to the website ALKB posted, I remember I have checked the DAAD website before and the thing is that I'm getting confusing information from there..
First and foremost, when searching for available degrees, I swear I have tried searching for over 20-25 degrees in different fields in English (just to see if I would get any results), and 23 were unavailable, I just got a "Sorry! Match not found." message. Same thing happened with a couple of degrees in courses in German too. The site must have a problem or what? I hope it doesn't cover every single university, I mean, I wasn't able to find anything..

Next, going to the Scholarships section, http://www.study-in.de/en/study/scholarships-financing/ it says that there are scholarships given for different students, and can be accessed at the DAAD Scholarship Database (Link). Yes again, this gives me an error saying "404 not found". And I didn't know there were scholarships available in Germany. Back to the main scholarship page, if you scroll down, there's a video of a guy talking about life and expenses in Germany, here: 




He says that the university gives him a transportation ticket which is free, just like you said, but then says that the university charges him 50 Euros for it... Uhm, what?

Moving on, he says "Either you or your family can pay for the living expenses, or you can apply for financial aid. There are many organizations in Germany that offer _scholarships_, so you'll be able to pay it all".

So are only scholarships or financial aids offered to help students, or both? Are they available to only certain students (in the US for example they're available to victims of human trafficking, refugees only), or can all people in need be able to receive them? Do you have to apply for them on your own rately or they're given through the university, I mean, does the university help you at all to find them? He says that if you're interested you have to check the DAAD scholarships database, which as I said is down at the moment..

Another thing I wanted to note, is that if you scroll down to the comments (You have to view the video on Youtube, to view the youtube comments), there's a person asking if universities in Germany have hostels, and the DAAD replies with:
"German universities have no hostels but the Studentenwerk (Student union) runs a lot of dormitories for students."
Is this Studentwerk affiliated with the universities or are they a separate organization? Do the universities not offer hostels at all :/ ?

Sorry again for all the questions and linking to that site so much, but I think it's having maintenance or something, or at least I hope so, I hope there actually are courses available in English :S..

Thanks!


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## MrTweek

Hilarious, how they are not able to keep their website running 
The scholarship database moved here:
Finding Scholarships - DAAD - Deutscher Akademischer Austausch Dienst

To find English speaking classes, I guess who'll have to rely on google. Universities usually have good websites with any information you might need in multiple languages. See here for some examples:
KIT-INTLStudying at KIT - English Study Courses
English Programs — Studierendenportal
What do you want to study, btw?



> the university gives him a transportation ticket which is free, just like you said, but then says that the university charges him 50 Euros


Well, that's this adminstration fee I mentioned. It's 50 EUR per semester, not per month. At some universities the ticket is included in the administration fee, so everyone gets it. Others make it optional, so you pay a higher fee (50 EUR in this case) to get the ticket.
This is really cheap anyway. You will most likely need public transport and a regular monthly pass will cost like 60 EUR per month.



> So are only scholarships or financial aids offered to help students, or both? Are they available to only certain students (in the US for example they're available to victims of human trafficking, refugees only), or can all people in need be able to receive them? Do you have to apply for them on your own rately or they're given through the university, I mean, does the university help you at all to find them? He says that if you're interested you have to check the DAAD scholarships database, which as I said is down at the moment..


Scholarships are financial aids.
Many of them are given by private organisations, so they an choose who they want to support. Usually anyone can apply, but not everyone gets them. Public scholarships are often given to students with very good grades, others are given to however applies first. They are all independent and each of them has their own rules.



> Is this Studentwerk affiliated with the universities or are they a separate organization? Do the universities not offer hostels at all :/ ?


Again, this is different at each university 
Studentenwerk is usually closely affiliated with the university, but they can make their own decisions. This shouldn't make a difference for you though. I mean, it doesn't really matter whom you pay your rent to, right? 



> Sorry again for all the questions


No worries, I am happy to help. I am having similar issues at the moment on the other end of the world and I know how valuable help can be 



> I hope there actually are courses available in English :S..


Definitely. And it's getting more and more.


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## abcdef

MrTweek said:


> Hilarious, how they are not able to keep their website running
> The scholarship database moved here:
> Finding Scholarships - DAAD - Deutscher Akademischer Austausch Dienst
> 
> To find English speaking classes, I guess who'll have to rely on google. Universities usually have good websites with any information you might need in multiple languages. See here for some examples:
> KIT-INTLStudying at KIT - English Study Courses
> English Programs — Studierendenportal
> What do you want to study, btw?


Thanks! I actually am in the middle of huge battling in my mind of what I'll choose, but I really like animals and sitting for hours in the computer designing different stuff, so I guess it'll be either Veterinary or Digital Media, or at least something in that field.... Actually I find it so confusing that I don't even know how I'm going to decide.
Another thing that I've done is that I've limited my searches to universities in Dresden, Berlin and Leipzig only, since (not only by you) I read that are cheap cities..Am I doing wrong? The very first link you gave me, for example, does it offer only a degree in Mechanical Engineering in English? 



> Well, that's this adminstration fee I mentioned. It's 50 EUR per semester, not per month. At some universities the ticket is included in the administration fee, so everyone gets it. Others make it optional, so you pay a higher fee (50 EUR in this case) to get the ticket.
> This is really cheap anyway. You will most likely need public transport and a regular monthly pass will cost like 60 EUR per month.


Oh, I see, I understood wrong. So even if the university itself charges no tuition/administrative fees at all, does it still give you the option to pay them a certain fee to get these type of facilities?




> Scholarships are financial aids.
> Many of them are given by private organisations, so they an choose who they want to support. Usually anyone can apply, but not everyone gets them. Public scholarships are often given to students with very good grades, others are given to however applies first. They are all independent and each of them has their own rules.
> 
> Again, this is different at each university


Do you have any general idea of how easily are they given, I mean, how big is the number of students that receive them is, or do they give aids only to a very limited amount of people? The database they provide seems hard to browse through, for example there were scholarships awarded to people who are in a small group and that have a teacher in lead, that means that I have to be in university for that .. Others consisted of opening an online voting so that other people can vote for me to win the scholarship. This is too much for a kid's brain like me, I don't want to whine but don't universities, or embassies in your country help you with these? Most of the scholarships had information in German only and I was totally lost..



> Studentenwerk is usually closely affiliated with the university, but they can make their own decisions. This shouldn't make a difference for you though. I mean, it doesn't really matter whom you pay your rent to, right?


No, it doesn't matter who I pay my rent to, but how do I find the Studentenwerk location's and contact, whatever, in cases where they are not affiliated with the university? I think I should understand the concept, is this Studentwerk a sort of building that is placed next to a university, or are they an organization that offer hostels as one of their numerous facilities? If the Studentenwerk is not affiliated with the University do I still get the food discount by paying them? I know you said that the food discount is made by the university when you pay their fees, but how does it work, I can eat breakfast and probably lunch at the university, but what do I do about dinners? Or is only one meal subsidized?



> No worries, I am happy to help. I am having similar issues at the moment on the other end of the world and I know how valuable help can be
> 
> Definitely. And it's getting more and more.


Thanks, I really don't know where I would have been without your replies, I have gotten more than several hours of pointless general information from Google searches, it's great to get info from native experts like you .


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## MrTweek

> Another thing that I've done is that I've limited my searches to universities in Dresden, Berlin and Leipzig only, since (not only by you) I read that are cheap cities..Am I doing wrong?


Well, Germany has 418 universities, so it is very hard to give you general advice.
Here's a list to get an idea: Liste deutscher Hochschulen ? Wikipedia
It's German, but hey, it's a list, you will understand.

You should google for a certain course and try to find out which universities offer it in English language. Then you can research about the city and check the cost of living there. Don't limit your search to certain cities.
Google for something like "digital media courses in english" or whatever and see what you can find.



> So even if the university itself charges no tuition/administrative fees at all, does it still give you the option to pay them a certain fee to get these type of facilities?


I guess have I to clarify that a bit...
Tuition fee: Only exists in the states of Bavaria and Lower Saxony (although Lower Saxony seems to abandon them soon).
Administration fee: Every university charges that. It can vary from 40 to 300 EUR per semester, depending on the Uni. Also the services included vary. Sometimes the ticket is included, sometimes you have to pay extra for that.



> No, it doesn't matter who I pay my rent to, but how do I find the Studentenwerk location's and contact, whatever, in cases where they are not affiliated with the university?


Just google for i.e. "Studentenwerk Dresden" and see what you find. But why would you want to do that before even knowing where you will go?



> I think I should understand the concept, is this Studentwerk a sort of building that is placed next to a university, or are they an organization that offer hostels as one of their numerous facilities?


See here: Studentenwerk - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
It's an organization. What they offer varies from city to city. This is not that important as they are not drastically cheaper than private accommodation. It's just one option out of 100s.
And by the way, there won't be hostels or dorms. Sharing rooms is very uncommon in Germany. You will have our own room, no matter where you stay.



> If the Studentenwerk is not affiliated with the University do I still get the food discount by paying them? I know you said that the food discount is made by the university when you pay their fees, but how does it work,


To be honest, I have no idea how this is organized in detail but this is really not important. Any university offers subsidized food and I just ate it without knowing who subsidizes it and how they are affiliated which each other.



> I can eat breakfast and probably lunch at the university, but what do I do about dinners? Or is only one meal subsidized?


Is that really that important to you? You can usually eat as much as you want, but they probably close in the late afternoon. You can still cook at home for dinner or eat somewhere else. You won't starve, really


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## ALKB

abcdef said:


> Do I just need to have the money in the account when they "check it", or once I load them to my account and they verify it, they put it on hold and let me spend just 1/12 of it monthly??
> Thanks for the link.


Ah, they seem to have done away with the restriction on the monthly withdrawings:

http://www.study-in.de/en/study/adm...ou-leave/proof-of-financial-resources/--11859


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## abcdef

MrTweek said:


> Well, Germany has 418 universities, so it is very hard to give you general advice.
> Here's a list to get an idea: Liste deutscher Hochschulen ? Wikipedia
> It's German, but hey, it's a list, you will understand.
> 
> You should google for a certain course and try to find out which universities offer it in English language. Then you can research about the city and check the cost of living there. Don't limit your search to certain cities.
> Google for something like "digital media courses in english" or whatever and see what you can find.


Thanks about the list! I still am very anxious about this, many courses are called differently in many countries, that I don't know if it's the same thing or if it's a complete different one, if it includes the knowledge needed for me to do the career I like or not.. There are so many different options but this makes the whole thing very hard at the same time.. Yeah, I'm sorry, I know I'm good at drama scenes, but still  ...




> I guess have I to clarify that a bit...
> Tuition fee: Only exists in the states of Bavaria and Lower Saxony (although Lower Saxony seems to abandon them soon).
> Administration fee: Every university charges that. It can vary from 40 to 300 EUR per semester, depending on the Uni. Also the services included vary. Sometimes the ticket is included, sometimes you have to pay extra for that.
> 
> 
> Just google for i.e. "Studentenwerk Dresden" and see what you find. But why would you want to do that before even knowing where you will go?
> 
> 
> See here: Studentenwerk - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
> It's an organization. What they offer varies from city to city. This is not that important as they are not drastically cheaper than private accommodation. It's just one option out of 100s.
> And by the way, there won't be hostels or dorms. Sharing rooms is very uncommon in Germany. You will have our own room, no matter where you stay.


So, if I understood it correct, it's an organization and there's usually only one in every city? I asking beforehand because I want to plan before leaving, whether I should stay in a private place with a room given by students who have already rented an apartment, or in a studentenwerk room. Do Studentenwerk room have facilities such as the private rooms, like, central heating, internet included in the rent, or are they the type of "modest" small rooms? Would you recommend living in one of these rooms offered by the organization at all, or am I better to find them myself? My main worries is that whether I can get any facility by paying the rent and staying in the Studentenwerk room, or are all the facilities available given to me by paying the university admission fee only?



> To be honest, I have no idea how this is organized in detail but this is really not important. Any university offers subsidized food and I just ate it without knowing who subsidizes it and how they are affiliated which each other.
> 
> Is that really that important to you? You can usually eat as much as you want, but they probably close in the late afternoon. You can still cook at home for dinner or eat somewhere else. You won't starve, really


I see, thanks.

Also one last question, might sound ridiculous, but still I thought I'd give it a shot. I know I'm aiming for English courses, but I have no intention to stay in a country where German is spoken and not learn the language... I really want to learn the language beforehand, but I don't have the time and money to go into a language course in my country, so I was thinking of possibly doing an intensive German course in Germany, since I'm not sure how well I'll be able to masterize German just by following a course in my home country, which are mostly for people who want to learn it for fun.

There are to things I want to ask for:
1) First, if I follow one of these courses, will I loose an entire university year (most probably yes), and if so, do I loose the right to go to a normal university or something like that? I mean, you usually go to university right after High School, right? Does a student visa (since I'm out of the EU and I need one of these) allow you to stay for more than 4 years, which is the general number of years that higher education lasts, or can I apply for as long as I like? I guess the language course period does count as a study year, right?
2)Second, just because I randomly found it, go to section "7.3 Tuition and Fees", here: Education in Germany - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia



> There are no university-sponsored scholarships in Germany, but a number of private and public institutions award scholarships, usually to cover living costs and books. *Moreover, there is a law (BAföG or Bundesausbildungsförderungsgesetz) which ensures that needy people can get up to 650€ per month for 4–5 years if they or their parents cannot afford all the costs involved with studying. Part (typically half) of this money is an interest-free loan which has to be repaid.*


So, apart from the scholarships, am I able to apply for a grant or a loan given by the state? How do they select such people, are they very picky or do you usually get in, if you come from countries such as mine? It would be really great if I could follow a language course at first, with the price covered entirely by the state (I guess 650 euros is more than enough), and then enroll at an university.

I'm sorry to give you so much legal stuff to deal with, but I'm just eager to know as much as I can, and this grant thing, given by the country, looks pretty awesome. Have you ever experienced with this?

Thanks again.


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## abcdef

ALKB said:


> Ah, they seem to have done away with the restriction on the monthly withdrawings:
> 
> http://www.study-in.de/en/study/adm...ou-leave/proof-of-financial-resources/--11859


Didn't know anything about that, thanks!!


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## MrTweek

> So, if I understood it correct, it's an organization and there's usually only one in every city? I asking beforehand because I want to plan before leaving, whether I should stay in a private place with a room given by students who have already rented an apartment, or in a studentenwerk room. Do Studentenwerk room have facilities such as the private rooms, like, central heating, internet included in the rent, or are they the type of "modest" small rooms? Would you recommend living in one of these rooms offered by the organization at all, or am I better to find them myself? My main worries is that whether I can get any facility by paying the rent and staying in the Studentenwerk room, or are all the facilities available given to me by paying the university admission fee only?


Whether you rent a room from Studentenwerk or private will be more or less the same.

As I mentioned before, in both cases you will have a private room. We don't share rooms. Also, you will definitely have heating. Central or not depends on the building obviously, but again, that doesn't really matter.
Internet can be free, but if not, it will just cost you like 10 € a month or so, so not an issue either.




> do I loose the right to go to a normal university or something like that? I mean, you usually go to university right after High School, right?


No, there is no age limit. You can still chose to attend university when you are 75.



> Does a student visa (since I'm out of the EU and I need one of these) allow you to stay for more than 4 years, which is the general number of years that higher education lasts, or can I apply for as long as I like? I guess the language course period does count as a study year, right?


I don't know about that, but I guess you will have a visa as long as you are enrolled in a course. Where do you have these 4 years from?



> So, apart from the scholarships, am I able to apply for a grant or a loan given by the state? How do they select such people, are they very picky or do you usually get in, if you come from countries such as mine? It would be really great if I could follow a language course at first, with the price covered entirely by the state (I guess 650 euros is more than enough), and then enroll at an university.


I am not sure whether foreigners are eligible for Bafög.



> How do they select such people


Well, German can always apply, and as long as they can prove that their parents can't support them, they will get it.
However since, it is a loan, you will have to pay it back after you finished.


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## ALKB

MrTweek said:


> Whether you rent a room from Studentenwerk or private will be more or less the same.
> 
> As I mentioned before, in both cases you will have a private room. We don't share rooms. Also, you will definitely have heating. Central or not depends on the building obviously, but again, that doesn't really matter.
> Internet can be free, but if not, it will just cost you like 10 € a month or so, so not an issue either.
> 
> 
> No, there is no age limit. You can still chose to attend university when you are 75.
> 
> I don't know about that, but I guess you will have a visa as long as you are enrolled in a course. Where do you have these 4 years from?
> 
> I am not sure whether foreigners are eligible for Bafög.
> 
> Well, German can always apply, and as long as they can prove that their parents can't support them, they will get it.
> However since, it is a loan, you will have to pay it back after you finished.



Non-EU students are only eligible for Bafoeg if they have already lived in Germany for quite a long time and already hold a residence permit.

The only issues you might face for 'studying a long time' will be if you study longer than 14 semesters. In that case you won't be able to get student health insurance anymore and will have to pay more.

Have you checked whether the Albanian high school leaving certificate is recognised as equal to the German Abitur? If not, the university might ask you to attend the Studienkolleg for a year before you start on your degree.

Also, look very carefully at the courses offered in English. Often, they are 50% English and 50% German! The initial level of German needed to enroll is usually very low, though.


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## abcdef

So apparently I am not eligible for Bafög: BAföG



MrTweek said:


> Whether you rent a room from Studentenwerk or private will be more or less the same.
> 
> As I mentioned before, in both cases you will have a private room. We don't share rooms. Also, you will definitely have heating. Central or not depends on the building obviously, but again, that doesn't really matter.
> Internet can be free, but if not, it will just cost you like 10 € a month or so, so not an issue either.
> 
> 
> No, there is no age limit. You can still chose to attend university when you are 75.
> 
> I don't know about that, but I guess you will have a visa as long as you are enrolled in a course. Where do you have these 4 years from?
> 
> I am not sure whether foreigners are eligible for Bafög.
> 
> Well, German can always apply, and as long as they can prove that their parents can't support them, they will get it.
> However since, it is a loan, you will have to pay it back after you finished.



The intensive language course, do you always have to pay for it or are there even times when it's for free? I'm just asking because I have read mixed things online, but I guess I can always follow German courses which are offered by the university, can't I? Are they nearly as effective as the other courses??



ALKB said:


> Non-EU students are only eligible for Bafoeg if they have already lived in Germany for quite a long time and already hold a residence permit.
> 
> The only issues you might face for 'studying a long time' will be if you study longer than 14 semesters. In that case you won't be able to get student health insurance anymore and will have to pay more.
> 
> Have you checked whether the Albanian high school leaving certificate is recognised as equal to the German Abitur? If not, the university might ask you to attend the Studienkolleg for a year before you start on your degree.
> 
> Also, look very carefully at the courses offered in English. Often, they are 50% English and 50% German! The initial level of German needed to enroll is usually very low, though.


Uhm, 14 semesters? 
I haven't checked if my country's high school leaving certificate is equal to the Abitur, but I'll ask at the embassy, however, how in the world do I tell if specific courses are 50% in German and 50% in English? I mean, I haven't found anything that says anything about this, and most university pages I've found just say "Tuition Language: English".

Also, how low is the initial level of German needed??

Thank you.


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## abcdef

So I found this: Language Courses at the HfK | HFK BREMEN



> The University of Arts even pays for your course, if you:
> 
> are an ERASMUS student or a student studying in line with a similar institutional contract or programme
> are a full-time student from abroad studying at the University of Arts and your German language proficiency level is less than C1
> do not exceed the maximum of 8 semester hours a week


So I am not an ERASMUS student, but I will fall in the two latter categories. Do I have to meet all three of the requirements or will the university still pay for my language course even if I'm not an ERASMUS student but I come from abroad, am a full time student and work for less than 8 hours a week?

It would be great, but if so do you suggest me to start learning the language, just the basics, so that I can study in the University of Bremen and still understand what is taught, while I'm learning the language at the same time? That would be great, but the university of arts of Bremen teaches in German only :/...

Thanks!


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## abcdef

Oh and also found this  :Digital Media (B.A.): Hochschule Darmstadt

Is Darmstadt good in comparison to the places we've been mentioning before? (In terms of education quality, friendliness, expenses, etc. etc.)


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## ALKB

abcdef said:


> So apparently I am not eligible for Bafög: BAföG
> 
> 
> 
> 
> The intensive language course, do you always have to pay for it or are there even times when it's for free? I'm just asking because I have read mixed things online, but I guess I can always follow German courses which are offered by the university, can't I? Are they nearly as effective as the other courses??
> 
> 
> 
> Uhm, 14 semesters?
> I haven't checked if my country's high school leaving certificate is equal to the Abitur, but I'll ask at the embassy, however, how in the world do I tell if specific courses are 50% in German and 50% in English? I mean, I haven't found anything that says anything about this, and most university pages I've found just say "Tuition Language: English".
> 
> Also, how low is the initial level of German needed??
> 
> Thank you.



It all depends on the university and the specific course you are studying. I'd say that the university language courses are better than most commercial courses , at least the affordable ones.

14 semesters might seem long but if you study medicinefor instance, the minimum time needed is around 13 semesters.

Read the course description (on the university's web site) carefully, I was looking at electronic engineering a few days ago and found only one masters course that was exclusively in English. The level of German required depends on the uni. For Darmstadt (nice place, by the way), it was A1 at admission for the bachelor and then compulsoryt German courses while studying.


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## abcdef

ALKB said:


> It all depends on the university and the specific course you are studying. I'd say that the university language courses are better than most commercial courses , at least the affordable ones.
> 
> 14 semesters might seem long but if you study medicinefor instance, the minimum time needed is around 13 semesters.
> 
> Read the course description (on the university's web site) carefully, I was looking at electronic engineering a few days ago and found only one masters course that was exclusively in English. The level of German required depends on the uni. *For Darmstadt (nice place, by the way), it was A1 at admission for the bachelor and then compulsoryt German courses while studying.*


Hey, thanks for the reply!
I actually didn't really understand the last sentence, so to get your admission accepted in Darmstadt, you need to have an A1 German level, than what is compulsory while studying?

Also is it a place as "cheap" as the aforementioned, or does it fall in the moderately-expensive ones?

Thanks again.


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## MrTweek

> how in the world do I tell if specific courses are 50% in German and 50% in English?


They will state it.


> Most university pages I've found just say "Tuition Language: English".


That means 100% English.



> Also, how low is the initial level of German needed??


Again, depends on the university. They will state it somewhere though.



> Is Darmstadt good in comparison to the places we've been mentioning before? (In terms of education quality, friendliness, expenses, etc. etc.)


Don't really know it, but probably pretty much an average German city. Good location though.
That links says something like "Most of the programme is in English". Maybe that's not bad for you, if you have only some classes in German. I would ask them, before signing up though. It seems to be targeted at Germans, so it might as well mean something like "first year German, then English".



> what is compulsory while studying?


Means they offer courses and you MUST attend them, if you want or not. They are probably free though.



> Also is it a place as "cheap" as the aforementioned, or does it fall in the moderately-expensive ones?


Shouldn't really be expensive.


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## ALKB

abcdef said:


> Hey, thanks for the reply!
> I actually didn't really understand the last sentence, so to get your admission accepted in Darmstadt, you need to have an A1 German level, than what is compulsory while studying?
> 
> Also is it a place as "cheap" as the aforementioned, or does it fall in the moderately-expensive ones?
> 
> Thanks again.



For electrical engineering in Darmstadt you need an A1 level of German to get admission to the course. Then the university offers language courses (German for international students, English for German students in teh programme) and as far as I understood it, it is a must to attend a German course all through the programme to get your German to a standard that enables you to follow German lectures.

Darmstadt has a surprisingly high income level. This web site:

WGs Darmstadt : WG Zimmer Angebote in Darmstadt

shows rooms in shared apartments available from around €200.


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## abcdef

ALKB said:


> For electrical engineering in Darmstadt you need an A1 level of German to get admission to the course. Then the university offers language courses (German for international students, English for German students in teh programme) and as far as I understood it, it is a must to attend a German course all through the programme to get your German to a standard that enables you to follow German lectures.
> 
> Darmstadt has a surprisingly high income level. This web site:
> 
> WGs Darmstadt : WG Zimmer Angebote in Darmstadt
> 
> shows rooms in shared apartments available from around €200.



When you say that Darmstadt has a high income level, are you trying to say that it's expensive at the same time ?

As I said I will be studying for Digital Media, which is different than technical engineering, but however, I'd really love to study the language while I'm following my studies, and I can definitely raise my language level below A1. The fact that the course is compulsory is an added bonus in my opinion because it will make me more motivated to learn.

The German course is free, I guess, along with the tuition?

However, one thing that I wanted to clarify (sorry, I know it must sound dumb), but the university that I mentioned above, which offers Digital Media courses in English, is called "University of Applied Sciences Darmstadt (Dieburg)". So, it is located in Dieburg, right? That's like, a small district/area within the city of Darmstadt? Because I am like, unable to find almost *anything* online about Dieburg (reviews from others), all I can find is people saying how Dieburg is cool, because Darmstadt is a nice city and you can travel to it fast from Dieburg. The heck??
I have no idea about how expensive it might be, either :S...

Thanks though.


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## ALKB

abcdef said:


> When you say that Darmstadt has a high income level, are you trying to say that it's expensive at the same time ?
> 
> As I said I will be studying for Digital Media, which is different than technical engineering, but however, I'd really love to study the language while I'm following my studies, and I can definitely raise my language level below A1. The fact that the course is compulsory is an added bonus in my opinion because it will make me more motivated to learn.
> 
> The German course is free, I guess, along with the tuition?
> 
> However, one thing that I wanted to clarify (sorry, I know it must sound dumb), but the university that I mentioned above, which offers Digital Media courses in English, is called "University of Applied Sciences Darmstadt (Dieburg)". So, it is located in Dieburg, right? That's like, a small district/area within the city of Darmstadt? Because I am like, unable to find almost *anything* online about Dieburg (reviews from others), all I can find is people saying how Dieburg is cool, because Darmstadt is a nice city and you can travel to it fast from Dieburg. The heck??
> I have no idea about how expensive it might be, either :S...
> 
> Thanks though.



I was looking at electrical engineering for my husband's cousin. The German course in that programme was free/included.

I followed the link and it says language: DE EN

It also says that you need to pass a special aptitude test to get in. If you are interested, why don't you write an email to one of the provided email addresses and ask what kind of level of German is required, if any.

Have a look here, too:

Studienplatz mit ausländischen Bildungsnachweisen: Hochschule Darmstadt

I don't know anything about Dieburg, but it was in the list of popular districts when I looked at room rentals for students in Darmstadt. It seems to be a small town just outside of Darmstadt proper, which has been combined into the same administrative district (Darmstadt-Dieburg).


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## MrTweek

> So, it is located in Dieburg, right? That's like, a small district/area within the city of Darmstadt? Because I am like, unable to find almost *anything* online about Dieburg (reviews from others), all I can find is people saying how Dieburg is cool, because Darmstadt is a nice city and you can travel to it fast from Dieburg.


Just look it up on google maps 
It's a small town, 15 km out of Darmstadt. But since you said you prefer living out of cities, closer to nature, this sounds like what you want?
Also, the rent in towns like this tends to be much cheaper than in bigger cities.


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## abcdef

Okay so I don't like the fact that I'm so scattered, but I posted on another forum the specific question just to get any quick idea, I am kinda disappointed by the replies and really, most people were strictly saying that you can't even think about coming to live in Germany without at least 700 euros per year... Really? 

I don't care even if I get back to Leipzig/Dresden lol ...


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## abcdef

Bump.


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## ALKB

abcdef said:


> Okay so I don't like the fact that I'm so scattered, but I posted on another forum the specific question just to get any quick idea, I am kinda disappointed by the replies and really, most people were strictly saying that you can't even think about coming to live in Germany without at least 700 euros per year... Really?
> 
> I don't care even if I get back to Leipzig/Dresden lol ...



Um, yes?

Germany requires international students to show 8040€ at their disposal. Divide that by 12 and you get € 670/month.

Requiring you to put the money into a blocked account that you can't touch until you are in Germany is supposed to make sure that you don't end up living under a bridge or worse!

If you find a really cheap room, let's say €200 you still have to pay food and books and electricity and gas and water and broadband and mobile phone... Ithink € 670 is a realistic figure.


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## abcdef

ALKB said:


> Um, yes?
> 
> Germany requires international students to show 8040€ at their disposal. Divide that by 12 and you get € 670/month.
> 
> Requiring you to put the money into a blocked account that you can't touch until you are in Germany is supposed to make sure that you don't end up living under a bridge or worse!
> 
> If you find a really cheap room, let's say €200 you still have to pay food and books and electricity and gas and water and broadband and mobile phone... Ithink € 670 is a realistic figure.


Thanks for replying.

As I said I can add the money to the bank account to show that I have such an amount to support myself but I can't afford spending them all, again, I know this doesn't sound good to you but still...

Most of the rooms I've found here (if not all of them): WG Zimmer Wohnungen Wohnungssuche WG Suche WG Wohnung vermieten WG Nachmieter Zwischenmiete : WG-Gesucht.de have the electricity, heating and internet are included in the rent and I've very easily found really nice rooms for only 150 euros, so food would be my main concern..


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## ALKB

abcdef said:


> Thanks for replying.
> 
> As I said I can add the money to the bank account to show that I have such an amount to support myself but I can't afford spending them all, again, I know this doesn't sound good to you but still...
> 
> Most of the rooms I've found here (if not all of them): WG Zimmer Wohnungen Wohnungssuche WG Suche WG Wohnung vermieten WG Nachmieter Zwischenmiete : WG-Gesucht.de have the electricity, heating and internet are included in the rent and I've very easily found really nice rooms for only 150 euros, so food would be my main concern..


You can always hope to be able to live frugally and to find a part time job.

As somebody who has lived in 7 different countries on three continents I can tell you that hope is not the best base to build an international move on. _Something _unexpected _always_ comes up and it's always expensive.

On the other hand it might just work out.


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## abcdef

ALKB said:


> You can always hope to be able to live frugally and to find a part time job.
> 
> As somebody who has lived in 7 different countries on three continents I can tell you that hope is not the best base to build an international move on. _Something _unexpected _always_ comes up and it's always expensive.
> 
> On the other hand it might just work out.


Well of course I don't plan to starve myself to death, but it just raised my hopes that I could make a decent/modest living there, considering that I'm not the party-hard person or someone who eats out daily...
Thanks.


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## ALKB

abcdef said:


> Well of course I don't plan to starve myself to death, but it just raised my hopes that I could make a decent/modest living there, considering that I'm not the party-hard person or someone who eats out daily...
> Thanks.


Look, I am not saying it won't work. Sometimes you hit the ground running and everything falls into place. 

It's just that this is noty guaranteed. Would you be able to have at least a few thousand EUR at your disposal for the first few months? It's unlikely that you will find a job right away.


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