Higher Education in Germany

Germany has a well established network of educational institutions (Universities and Universities of Applied Sciences) with a variety of courses offered in English attracting large volumes of foreign students every year. The best source of information are provided in the website www.daad.de which is also the largest scholarship provider.

Location: Central Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and the North Sea, between the Netherlands and Poland, south of Denmark

Type of Institutions: Universities, Technical Universities and Fachhochschulen (University of Applied Sciences). - Studies is relatively easy in Fachochschule compared to Universities. The various state governments have recently introduced tuition fees ranging from €500 to €1500 for all students irrespective of nationality. Most institutions offer students 'Semesterticket' a very cheap transportation means in the local suberbs. Large number of courses in English are available in almost all Science and engineering sectors.

The following section is added in response to Mr. Kiran's request. According to Times Online top 100 universities in the world most of this list is occupied by Universities in US, UK, Australia etc. What is common among these countries?? Increasing number of consultants promoting them, heavy fees at least for the foreign students, and they all are English speaking countries. One can find few (~4) German Universities in the top 100 list following the Indian IITs at rank 50. If you are an exceptional student looking to join one among the top 100's, consider Germany as an option only if you miss the IITs. The rankings were based on a survey for the THES of 3,703 academics worldwide, who were asked to identify up to 30 universities best for research within their own field of expertise.

Coming back to my view on US, UK, Australia trend - For these countries, education is one of their largest exports. quoting The Hindu news paper, Tony Pollock, director of IDP, Australia's international development programmes agency, says: "International education is worth $7.8 billion and is Australia's fourth largest export after coal, iron ore and tourism. It is way larger than commodity exports like wheat and wool." link

Again the question is why there is still a large flow of students to these countries? There is no trouble learning a new language. Australia offers an attractive immigration plan for its foreign students. One believes life is settled if he could somehow reach the US. London has plenty of part time jobs to offer the students. (comments required). If one want to enjoy the benefit of cost efficient? quality education, the search might end in Europe. Large number of courses in English introduced in late 90's were utilized by a number of foreign students as a cheap access to the Europe. The admission process was not competitive and the visa hurdles are much less. The bottleneck would be the foreign language which additionally limits the chance for part time off-campus jobs for foreign students. (But compare the tuition fees of €0 or €500 with £10,000 or $12,000 or AUS$18,000.) Most of the European university websites are hosted in their National language also with an English version, still not as attractive and easy reachable as their English speaking counters. Additionally, education being a free service in Europe, most visa rules demand the foreign students to return to their home country after completion of study.

Coming to the second question of Mr. Kiran, most of the Universities in Germany are owned and run by state and central government funds. I personally believe that the government sees all universities equally (ranking). Regarding the chances of getting an employment after studies is a question of debate. The easy answer would be - the chances are very less. The unemployment rates are very high after the formation of EU and preference is officially given to people from EU before considering someone from the outside world. Again the situation depends on your skills and abilities. If you are an exceptional student with unique skills, you might be lucky enough to find a job. This holds good for most IT related jobs. Another area to find employment would be the research sectors. To be able to get a job in the private sectors demands high proficiency in English and the local language in addition to the job specific skills and minimum work experience.

It is relatively easy to get an internship (usually paid) or practical work semester in the industry than getting a job. Being a student (in student visa) in Germany offers many advantages - subsidized insurance, travel, tax return, 90 days work permit etc. If you manage to get a full time job, you will have to secure a work permit from the 'Arbeitsamt' who ensures that there is no eligible European available for the job. Still there are a few who succeeded all these hurdles and are working in Germany. One might say, luck or God's grace, or he's full of talents. Follow the 'daad.de' link at the left to find specific courses at German Universities. I request Mr. Kiran to leave a comment about this article and I shall offer any personal opinions.

I will review this post soon (updated on 31 December 2006 13:00 hr GMT)

Education in Norway

The majority of Norwegian institutions of higher education are publicly funded.

Location: Northern Europe, bordering the North Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, west of Sweden. Norway is one of the three Scandinavian Countries in N-Europe.
Language of Education: Norwegian and English
Type of Higher Educational Institutions: Universities and University Collages
Major Universities:
Norwegian University of Life Sciences (UMB)
Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU)
University of Bergen (UiB)
University of Oslo (UiO)
University of Stavanger (UiS)
University of Tromsø (UiT)

Special Institutions:
MF Norwegian School of Theology
Norwegian Academy of Music (NMH)
Norwegian School of Economics and Business Administration (NHH)
Norwegian School of Sport Sciences (NIH)
Norwegian School of Veterinary Science
Oslo School of Architecture and Design (AHO)

Scholarships:
Various sources of scholarships are available for foreign students including:
International Scholarship from Norwegian Government
Quota Scheme for International Cooperation in Higher Education

In addition, several Masters courses in Science and Engineering at its State run University Collages are accessible to foreign students.

Study in Europe

European Union has joined hands to standardize the higher education system in the member states initiating a variety of Master and Bachelor programs in its renowned Universities and collages. Increased number of courses are being delivered in English language attracting students from all over the world to benefit from these courses. GRE or GMAT tests are often not mandatory but proof of English ability is a basic requirement for gaining admission.

Unlike the UK education providers who sells 'knowledge', most EU countries offer quality education free of cost, or some times at a very low cost. There are also a large number of scholarship schemes - from the Governments, Universities, and other NGOs - to support the student for his living cost.

The Master programs attract students from all around the world, mostly from Asia (India, Pakistan, China) Middle East (Iran, Lebanon, Egypt) South America and within EU. Though the chances of finding a part time job is very limited, some students are luck enough to find quality jobs within the University or in the neighborhood. Practical semesters or Internships are another promising opportunity for the students to gain valuable experience which sometimes even lead to a job offer.

Post your comments or help requests for specific informations.