Interest in studying abroad in Germany just seems to keep on growing. This is largely due to the fact that there are no undergraduate tuition fees at public universities in Germany, and this applies to both German students and internationals, regardless of nationality. Just a small nominal university fee is charged, of around €150-250 (~US$160-265) to cover administration costs.
These low study costs, combined with Germany’s strong economy and excellent higher education system, makes the prospect of undertaking study in Germany for free extremely appealing for both students and their parents worldwide. Indeed, in a recent HSBC report on ‘The Value of Education’, Germany is among the top five countries in the world in terms of perceived quality of education among surveyed parents. More than 40 German universities are featured among the world’s leaders in the QS World University Rankings – again, beaten only by the US and UK – with the highest place taken by Technische Universität München.
There are, however, signs that studying in Germany for free will not be possible for much longer. The state of Baden-Württemberg in south-west Germany recently announced plans to reintroduce tuition fees for non-EU students from autumn 2017, meaning non-EU students will be required to pay fees of around €1,500 (~US$1,600) per semester to study at universities in the state, such as Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg.
If you’re successful in finding a university at which to study in Germany for free, you will of course still need to budget for living costs. If you need a German student visa, you’ll need to prove you have around €8,700 (~US$9,230) per year for living expenses.
Two of the top destinations for study in Germany, Munich and Berlin, are also ranked as two of the most affordable cities to study
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