That said, the vast majority of German students are now enrolled in bachelor and master programs, whereas other programs, including state-examined professional programs and non-Bologna compliant programs in artistic fields, make up a comparatively small percentage: In 2018, 49.6 percent of students were enrolled in bachelor programs, 28.3 percent in master programs, 5.6 percent in doctoral programs, and 16.5 percent in other types of programs. Short-cycle tertiary programs below the bachelor’s level are very uncommon in Germany. Less than 1 percent of students enroll in these types of programs compared with an average of 17 percent in other OECD countries. Credit System and Grading Scale To graduate, students must pass a rigorous written and oral final examination, which is overseen by the ministries of education of the states, almost all of which mandate standard content for one uniform examination taken by all students. To further standardize the exams, several states use the same questions in German, mathematics, English, and French. These questions are developed by the Institute for Educational Quality Improvement ( IQB), a joint institution of the states responsible for monitoring the quality of German schools. Doctoral degrees are almost exclusively awarded by universities and research institutes—FHs are only in very rare exceptions allowed to offer these programs. There are two types of doctoral programs in Germany: “individual programs” and “structured programs.” Traditionally, all doctoral programs were pure research programs without coursework, attendance requirements, or hard deadlines. Candidates in these individual programs, which still predominate, independently prepare a dissertation under the supervision of a dissertation advisor ( Doktorvater or Doktormutter), usually a full professor or other senior researcher. The degrees awarded upon the defense of the dissertation have different Latin names, such as Doktor Rerum Naturalium (Doctor of Natural Sciences) or Doktor Rerum Politicarum (Doctor of State Sciences). Published 19 April 2016 | PDF | 1.4 MB 3.5.4 Theme-based vocabulary (Higher Tier) Identity and culture Me, my family and friends German

The translation is assessed for AO3 (10 marks) as specified iWhen analyzing German education, it’s important to understand that the country has a federal system of government that grants its member states a high degree of autonomy in education policy—a structure that’s not unlike the federal system of the United States. The German Federal Ministry of Education and Research in Berlin ( BMBF) has an important role in areas like funding, financial aid, and the regulation of vocational education and entry requirements in the professions. But most other aspects of education fall under the direct authority of the education ministries of the 16 individual states, called Bundesländer in German. After the introduction of the reforms in 1999, almost all Diplom and Magister programs were successively split into undergraduate and graduate cycles and replaced by the new bachelor and master programs. Professional disciplines like medicine or law remain an exception to this structure. Whereas some countries with similar systems—like the Netherlands, for example—switched to the two-cycle structure across the board, Germany maintained long single-tier programs in most professions. The university with the largest enrollment is the FernUniversitat Hagen, a public distance education provider with about 75,000 students who learn at various regional study centers across Germany, as well as in Austria, Hungary, and Switzerland. Other large public universities include the University of Cologne with 54,000 students, the University of Munich (49,000 students), and the Technical University of Aachen (45,900 students). Overall, more than 60 percent of German students attend universities. There were no data for the post-pandemic 2020 summer semester available as of this writing, but it’s clear that the pandemic led to a sharp drop in the number of international students in Germany, as it did in other host countries. According to Uni-assist, Germany’s main credential evaluation agency, for instance, the number of international applications for the winter semester 2020 was down by 20 percent compared with that of the previous year. Interviews of students from India, the second-largest sending country of international students to Germany, reflect that student mobility is currently hampered by concerns about diminished employment prospects after graduation, logistical hurdles, as well as apprehensions about educational quality, given that German universities have since the pandemic switched to blended learning, combining face-to-face instruction with online courses.

Elementary education begins at the age of six and lasts four years (grades one to four), except in a small number of states where it lasts six years. Most pupils learn at the Grundschule (foundation school), where they largely study the same general subjects. While there are some variations between state curricula, they usually include German, mathematics, social studies, physical education, technology, music, and religion or ethics. One noticeable difference is the age at which English is introduced. While English classes don’t begin before grade three in some jurisdictions, pupils in some states begin to study English as early as grade one. One state, Saarland, does not offer English in der Grundschule at all. Student assessment and promotion are generally school-based—there are no final graduation exams, nor is a formal final graduation certificate awarded. Progression between grades is based on internal school assessment and generally requires examinations. Students who have a failing grade ( ungenügend) in a compulsory subject must repeat the year. They can have two conditionally passing grades similar to the U.S. grade of D—the grade of mangelhaft—but must usually repeat the year if they earn these grades in three subjects. The grading scale in the upper-secondary stage at Gymnasiums is a 15-point scale that is different from the grading scale used at other stages and types of schools. Both scales are shown below. Admission requirements for international undergraduate students are fairy stringent in Germany. Applicants from non-EU countries who did not complete any post-secondary study in their home countries are often required to complete a one-year preparatory program ( Studienkolleg), at the end of which they must pass an equivalency examination ( Feststellungspr üfung). Admission into these prep programs requires adequate German language skills and may involve entrance examinations. Even if a prep program is not required, students from all non-German-speaking countries must pass a German language test, such as the Test DaF, unless they seek entry into English-taught programs. The specific admission requirements for 130 countries can be found in a database maintained by the DAAD. The Tertiary Degree Structure The grading scale is largely consistent across public universities, even if private universities and some programs, such as law programs, use alternative scales. It ranges from 1 to 5 and is different from most numerical grading scales in that the lowest number represents the highest grade. At most institutions, a final grade average of 4.0 is required for graduation, but some universities may graduate students with a final grade of 4.3. Of note, there’s been a trend toward grade inflation in recent years. Between 2000 and 2011 alone, the number of good and very good grades awarded by German universities in final graduation exams increased by 9 percent, although it should be noted that there are significant variations in grade distributions between academic disciplines.The university was established based on the “ Humboldtian model of higher education,” developed by the Prussian philosopher and education minister Wilhelm von Humboldt. Core elements of this model include the integration of teaching and research—which were hitherto largely separated—and an independent academia free from state intervention. Its holistic approach to education, allowing students to freely choose their own course of study, stands in contrast to the more rigid and hierarchical university models prevalent across most of the world in current times. Although some analysts contend that the Humboldtian model has been largely constructed after his death, there’s no question that the model itself has been a central paradigm in German education since the 19th century and has conceptually influenced higher education in much of continental Europe.

Germany is known for its high-quality vocational education system that has been emulated by several countries worldwide, partially because it’s considered effective in limiting youth unemployment: In 2020, Germany had the lowest youth unemployment rate in the OECD after Japan. To align these systems with the 12-year paradigm found in most of the world, most German states between 2001 and 2009 began to shorten their Abitur programs by one year to enable students to enter universities and the workforce at a younger age. The drive was called the G8 reforms, referring to a 4+8 system, as opposed to the 13-year G9 system (4+9). To preserve quality standards, the states pledged to maintain the old curricula, but to compress them in the new G8 “Turbo Abitur.” In some regulated vocations, such as allied health fields, an officially recognized qualification is required to work in the field. These occupations are typically regulated at the state level and aren’t part of the dual system. Another difference between the dual system and state-regulated programs is that the latter typically have formal academic admission requirements. Programs in regulated fields such as social work are primarily school-based programs supplemented by internships. In addition to these traditional programs, there are a multitude of other part-time education programs that may be as short as three months, or as long as four years, offered by a variety of providers and companies. Students may enroll in these programs to obtain advanced knowledge in their field, improve computer skills, or train in another field. The German government actively promotes further education and lifelong learning, particularly with regard to digital competencies. Retraining programs for unemployed individuals may be paid for by the state, but unlike secondary programs, post-secondary vocational education is usually not tuition free. Of note, Germany suffers from a shortage of teachers, notably in the eastern part of the country. While there’s currently an ample supply of upper-secondary teachers, particularly in western states, the country will face a shortfall of between 10,000 and 26,000 elementary teachers by 2025, depending on the estimate. Growing nationwide teacher shortages are also expected in lower-secondary education, as well as in vocational schools, where some estimates forecast a gap of 60,000 teachers by 2030.Assessment objectives (AOs) are set by Ofqual and are the same across all GCSE German specifications and all exam boards. Thuringia: G8—already had a 12-year system before the reforms; Abitur programs at “ vocational gymnasiums” are 13 years in length

In some states, a Realschule qualification that meets the requirements for further education is called erweitertes (extended) or qualifizierendes (qualifying) Realschule certificate. In 2019, there were reportedly 177 international schools in Germany, teaching English-language curricula such as the International Baccalaureate (IB), British, or U.S. curricula to some 95,000 students, about 75 of them expat children and a quarter of them German. Most of these schools are expensive private schools with a comparatively small student body. However, there are also some public schools that offer IB programs in addition to regular German programs, enabling students to earn an IB Diploma free of charge. There were 85 IB schools in Germany in 2020. The IB is officially recognized as a university entrance qualification in Germany, as long as students study a certain combination of subjects.

Provides information on the performance of candidates - which is useful to teachers, lecturers and assessors in their preparation of candidates for future assessment. Course Reports Supports you to teach the skills studentswill need, such as translation and understanding authentic and literary texts, and will help you to understand what is expected at each tier in the linear assessments. However, most states have now switched to the Bologna structure, splitting the first stage of education into a three-year Bachelor of Education program followed by a two-year Master of Education program. The most common model is a 300 ECTS bachelor and master combination for teachers at all levels, followed by an 18-month preparatory service (see an overview of the requirements in the different states here). That said, aspiring teachers still need to sit for state examinations, and some states have kept the old structure altogether. Despite these differences, graduates can work as teachers in all states—a formal recognition agreement to ensure mobility between jurisdictions was signed in 2013. Students are recommended to talk about both photos for approximately one minute at Foundation tier and approximately one and a half minutes at Higher tier. Coverage of the photos does not Most German international students—82 percent—currently study in other European countries with Austria, the U.K., the Netherlands, and Switzerland being the top destinations. The next most popular world regions are North America, accounting for 8 percent of overseas enrollments, as well as the Asia-Pacific region, accounting for 7.9 percent of enrollments. The U.S. and China were the fifth and sixth most common host countries of German mobile students in 2017.