Question about doing a postgraduate degree in Germany...?

Question

I'm currently half way through a History degree in Ireland. When I'm finished I'd love to go to Germany and do a postgraduate degree in some aspect of German history or politics.

Does anybody know what the cost of doing a postgraduate degree in Berlin is?..and I've heard that there is big demand for English speakers over there to teach. Is it true that I could fund my time in college there by teaching English.

I currently don't have a good knowledge of German but within 2 years I hope to be doing okay.

Answer 1

Ok, if you want to study on a German University, you better learn German, before they let you study there you will be tested, and one thing you will be tested for is your knowledge of the language.

But there is an other way to study in Germany, with an exchange program, have you considered this venue?

Regarding the costs, Germany has installed tuition fees, but they are very small, between 200 to 1000 Euro a year.

Regarding teaching English, especially in Berlin you have a lot of competition, it seems that everyone who comes to Berlin and speaks English want's to teach it.

It is difficult to get private students and you need to do a lot of advertisement.

Language schools pay between 10 - 14 Euros to their teachers, as freelancers, without any benefits.

The cost of living in Berlin is as far as I know (of course it depends on your spending habits) the cheapest in all of Germany.

I hope you'll be able to go, I am sure you'll enjoy it.

Answer 2

You'll have to undergo a fairly stringent test in German before they even let you near an auditorium or seminary, so you better do something about that now.

Since education is regulated by the "Landesrecht", i.e. regionally, you'll have to find out the fee for every single university you are interested in, except in Berlin all of them would be the same, I suppose. Just look up their websites.

Yes you could make some money out of teaching English, but unless you go freelance the main money would be made by the school employing you, and freelance is sometimes a very precarious existence.

Good luck, and I hope you'll enjoy your time in Germany as much as I did!