Some generalisation is, however, possible and one can say that as a four-year Bachelor degree holder from Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal or Sri Lanka, your degree is treated at par with a German bachelor degree and most universities will consider you eligible for masters provided you fulfill other criteria. In case you have a three-year Bachelor degree, do get in touch with course coordinator before applying.
Some universities may ask for your TOEFL/IELTS/GRE/GMAT scores, depending upon the subject you choose to study.

For example, GMAT may be asked for if you want to study economics or law. Universities will ask for very good German language skills in case you want to take up a programme in German medium. In such case, your knowledge of German needs to be certified through examinations like the TestDaF or DSH.

The German academic years is divided into two semesters: the Winter semester (October – March) and the summer semester (April – September). Accordingly, German universities have two intakes. The following timeline refers to courses beginning with the winter semester. In case you find a course that begins with the summer semester, just calculate the months accordingly and proceed!

Let us get into the details now:

Germany offers numerous International Programmes with English as the sole or primary medium of instruction. But as a student in Germany, your life will not be limited to the university campus. You will surely want to interact with people, do your internships, travel through the country-side and make the best of your time there. This is where knowledge of German will present a great advantage!
Universities offer beginner and well as advanced level courses where you can learn German. You can also start learning the language while you are still in your home country at the Goethe-Instituts (Max-Mueller Bhavan) / Goethe-Zentrums.

Funding in Germany is available in principle for research and in some cases at the master level. To get a comprehensive overview of various funding possibilities, visit www.funding-guide.de.

As an international student, you are permitted to work for 120 full days or 240 half days in a year. This will help you in getting a bit of extra pocket money!

After completing your degree in Germany, you can choose from amongst a wide range of options

You can stay on in the country for up to 18 months to look for a job that is in keeping with your education. Once you find a job, the residence permit issued to you for the purpose of studying, can be converted into a residence permit for taking gainful employment. Germany has always had a very strong industry-academia linkage. A lot of scientific research is funded by the industry as well. During your studies you can get the opportunity to do internships with German companies, which can open new vistas for your professional career.

Apart from the tuition fees, if any, you will require about Euro 860 per month for subsistence i.e. housing, food, clothing, study material and other expenses such as health insurance and leisure activities. Here is a table that shows students’ monthly expenses. The amounts can vary from city to city, and of course from lifestyle to lifestyle!

In Germany, the local engineer’s degrees (Diplomingenieur (Dipl.-Ing.), a first degree after five years of study at a university and Dipl.-Ing. (FH), the engineering degree offered by Fachhochschulen after four years of study) were abolished in most universities and “Fachhochschulen” in 2010 and were replaced by postgraduate master’s degrees (M.Sc. and M.Eng.).

The first Master of Engineering courses were introduced in Germany in 2000 as result of the Bologna process. This type of master’s degree is usually offered

The entry requirement is the successful completion of a bachelor’s degree or an equivalent from before the Bologna process, with good marks.

The nine leading German technical universities (Group of TU9), like most European universities of technology, prefer awarding the Master of Science degree for completing engineering science studies in a master’s program.^[6]