Germany takes pride in a dense and highly efficient research network spanning the whole country. Many well-known new technologies were in fact invented in Germany. The famous music format MP3, internet phone protocol VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) and the Transrapid (Magnetic levitation railway which is now in use in Shanghai) are all invented in Germany. Numerous German scientists won Nobel Prize Awards.
Research is conducted by universities, by public and private non-university institutes, and by industry itself. Major research projects, especially in the natural sciences, are conducted in government-funded research centres. Many German research and applied research institutes have a long tradition of collaborating closely with firms to develop new products.
Language is not a barrier. If you cannot speak a word of German, you can still do research freely in Germany. Numerous research projects are currently conducted in English. The researchers are also recruited internationally. Therefore, the German language does not constitute an obstacle for you to do research in Germany. For more information, please click here.
The German Doctoral degree may be a bit different from other countries: Taught Ph.D. programmes do not exist in the German system of higher education.The core of a doctorate is a research project which is pursued under the supervision of a professor ("Doktorvater" / ''Doktormutter''). Recently, however, more and more graduate schools and PhD programmes are being established which provide a suitable research environment particularly for foreign doctoral candidates. As long as the supervisor agrees, you can write your doctor thesis in English. For more information, please click here.
Tertiary education or higher education at German public universities charge relatively low tuition fees. This does not only apply to undergraduate programmes, but also to the postgraduate programmes. The upper limit is EUR 1,000 per academic year. Exceptions are MBA-programmes, summer courses and some very specific programmes. The actual amount of tuition fee charged by universities depends on federal states. However, there are still universities which do not charge any tuition fee. In other words, the situation is different from one federal state to another. For example, you might have to pay tuition fees in Bavaria but not in Berlin. Please be reminded that private universities charge higher tuition fees.
On the one hand, you do not need to pay for the tuition. On the other hand, there are a great number of scholarships for doctoral students and researchers. These scholarships cover your living expenses in Germany. Some of them even cover your travelling costs. You do not worry about the financial problem. For more information, please click here.
