Masters Degrees, Graduate Studies and Professional Programs in Germany

Since the Middle Ages, Germany has been a universally renowned destination for education, especially advanced education, in all fields of the arts, sciences, and humanities. German scholars have been among the most influential in the world, and have made profound advances in fields as diverse as physics, philosophy, economics, medicine, and literature. It’s no surprise, then, that so many people from all over the world travel to Germany to gain Master’s Degrees, PhDs, and other advanced postgraduate credentials.

Because so many people travel from foreign countries to attain advanced degrees in Germany, this country has developed a strong social and institutional infrastructure to support its burgeoning population of foreign students. Many courses, for example, are taught in English, making them accessible to people from all over the world. In addition, German degrees are typically respected in other countries, so it’s possible to attain a degree in Germany and leverage it to find employment in some other country, either the student’s home country or a third location.

This confluence of cultural and intellectual backgrounds, moreover, contributes significantly to the dynamism of the German educational and intellectual community. This is particularly true, of course, in the humanities and social sciences, where cross-cultural understanding and international communication are so fundamental to the disciplines themselves; however, even in more technical fields like the hard sciences, a diversity of backgrounds contributes significantly to the level of innovation that is possible. Thus, Germany’s appeal as an international educational destination is self-reinforcing: the more international students arrive on German campuses, the more the quality of education on those campuses is improved; and, conversely, the more the quality of education improves, the more international students are attracted there. Given how many centuries this cycle has been in action, one can imagine the excellent educational opportunities Germany has to offer.

Beyond the educational institutions themselves, the quality of life in Germany is also excellent. As one of the world’s wealthiest and most industrialized economies (Germany has the 5^th-highest GDP of any country on Earth), Germany offers a clean, comfortable, and efficient lifestyle well beyond what can be achieved in the majority of other countries. In terms of the quality of life, the one major drawback of studying in Germany is that students’ savings and other sources of funding may be worth less than in their own countries – the US dollar, for example, is worth significantly less than the Euro, and American tourists are often surprised at how weak their actual purchasing power is in Germany. This is beginning to change as the world economy stabilizes (and as the Euro continues to decline), but Germany’s cities continue to be very expensive, and students planning to study there would be wise to take this into account.

In short, Germany offers world-class education and modern, luxurious, and well-placed living. For those who are in a position to afford it, this is one of the best places in the world to study almost any subject.