Guidelines for Graduates in Europe
Masters in Germany
Hello dear Master’s in Germany candidates (no, this did not happen, We have postponed those who moved for business from the beginning, okay? Those who want to get away from the world for a while.
Hello!
We are Asya and Umut, 27 years old.. We spent 25 years of our 27-year life living in Turkey, carrying our bags on our backs whenever we find time, making trips abroad or participating in short-term projects abroad.. Meanwhile, I graduated from (Asia) Faculty of Law and got the lawyer’s license before I could understand what was happening to my hand, and Umut became an architect.. 24 of the life we live by ourselves. We met in 1999 and shortly after we met, we decided to become lovers, and 5 months after we became lovers, we decided to do a master’s degree together abroad.. After a research-application-reception process that followed, we found ourselves in Frankfurt within 3 months. time has almost flown and we are in Germany as of December 2016. We’re close to completing our year. In this process, one of us finished her master’s degree and went to business and is dealing with her thesis, while the other one finished the first year of her master’s and is dealing with her second year.. You see, Frankfurt became our home.. We found our job, our wandering soul found its harbor here.
As we said, even though we get tired from time to time during this process and we feel that we are expatriates in a country, we have never regretted that we packed up and moved to Frankfurt. We have full confidence in ourselves!
Living Abroad
At that point, we decided to prepare this blog and share with you both what we learned and what we experienced while we were learning to live abroad.. Since it is very important for us to research the topics we will write on the internet, to scrutinize, that is, to create a ‘blog with original content’, we have divided the subject of ‘Living Abroad’ into processes and will try to explain it as detailed as possible.
So, let’s rewind and this article is for those who are in the process of looking for schools and programs abroad!
Hello again!
Looking for Schools and Application Process for Master’s
When we decided to do a master’s degree in Europe, we were very confused and were not sure which country we wanted to focus on.. That’s why we had to do a lot of research and make a hard decision.. In this process, we applied to universities in almost every country in Europe and we were able to get accepted from many of them.. Our final decision, Frankfurt, was determined by our school preferences, not the country or city.. More precisely, although we know that Frankfurt is an ugly city, we found ourselves in Frankfurt within 3 months because we wanted the schools here the most.
Painful Graduate Research Period:
First let’s start here.. When you type ‘Master Abroad’ on Google, you first come across education agencies that will charge you tons of money and apply for a master’s degree on your behalf.. In fact, there is nothing extra that these agencies do, and your chances of being accepted do not change when you apply with an agency.. Whether a school accepts you depends entirely on your application documents, other documents and a little bit of luck.. So let’s say this right away, you can start by not spending money on these agencies! In fact, these agencies apply to schools so randomly that most of the time, these schools are the schools with the highest acceptance rate and therefore the lowest ‘rating’.. In other words, you don’t spend money for nothing and you don’t use your chance to go to a better school.
We have eliminated the agencies from the beginning and now we are alone with our free researcher spirit.. In this case, the most logical thing to do is to consult Google and it will give you the list of schools and programs in the field you will master.. Simply put, if you want to do a master’s degree in architecture, you have to write ‘Architecture Master Programs in Europe’ and review the schools one by one.. If you are a law graduate, like me, you can use the following site https://llm-guide.com/
The important thing here is ‘Deadline’ for graduate programs that the application deadlines have not passed. Some schools can close the application for a master’s program that will start in September 2017, like December 2016.. Therefore, when you start to be interested in this job, some schools have already closed their applications.. That’s why it’s good to start looking at least 1 year in advance.
Grade point average desired by schools for graduate school
It is important to pay attention to the minimum GPA they want when choosing the schools you will apply to.. Your GPA may be lower than 2.5, this will not prevent you from being accepted to a master’s degree in Europe, but there are some schools that say from the beginning that they will not accept anything below 3.5, so it makes more sense not to waste your time with these schools.
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Also, some Master’s programs in Europe are 1 year. There is no such thing as it will be 2 years like us.. For example, while all of the law graduates (LL.M) are 1 year, the departments related to architecture are not less than 2 years.. If you are applying for a 1-year master’s program, it is important to check whether there is a ‘thesis program’.. If it is a 1-year and non-thesis master’s program, you cannot continue your education with a doctorate afterwards.. It is necessary to have completed a master’s program with thesis in order to do a doctorate.. But if we say an average wage for Germany; If you are applying to a program in English, we can say that there is a high probability that you will at least sacrifice an average of 5,000 Euros for the program fee of the school.( Sorry!!)
Additional note:
After the e-mails we received, we researched once again, the number of free English master’s programs in Germany, especially in the fields of engineering and software, is higher than we expected (accident). You can search for master’s programs in Germany and look at the fees here.
Additional note 2:
Those who are looking for a free English master’s program in Frankfurt and its vicinity, Philipps Universitat Marburg and You can research the ‘Master’s in English’ departments of the University of Giessen, the programs at these two universities are free.
Let’s say you have made a list of the schools you will apply to and it’s time to prepare the documents.. This is the most boring part.. Although some schools require additional documents, most schools; Requires copy of diploma, transcript, school ranking, IELTS or TOEFL degree, letter of reference and letter of intent. The important thing here is to apply to programs that do not require a ‘minimum GPA’ if you have a low GPA, and to prepare for it if you have not yet taken IELTS or TOEFL.
What exactly are IELTS and TOEFL and is it difficult to get the desired score?
We thought of you as if you are applying for a master’s program in English here right now.. That’s why we will talk about IELTS and TOEFL, which you need to enter to prove your English language proficiency.. As you know, IELTS and TOEFL consist of four parts as ‘writing-reading-listening and speaking’ and almost all of the schools you will apply for graduate school want you to get a high score from one of these two exams.. In our opinion, the difficulty level of both is the same, but in TOEFL you are completely alone with a computer and even in the ‘speaking’ section, you talk to the computer with a headset.. On the other hand, IELTS is a classic exam method and you write everything down on paper.. The ‘Speaking’ part of IELTS is done separately and you meet a real person. In this respect, although IELTS is easier for us because it is the method we are used to, it is clear that it will vary from person to person.. As of December 2016, the fee to enter IELTS is 500 TL (it’s sad). You can also register on this site.. http://takeielts.britishcouncil.org/locations/turkey
Is it difficult to get the desired score?
Let’s give an example from ourselves here. I am a graduate of Istanbul University Faculty of Law.. Umut is a graduate of Yıldız Technical University, Faculty of Architecture.. We never went to a private school in our life and we never took English lessons during our university education.. We learned English mostly by chatting with people and watching movies with English subtitles in the overseas projects we participated in.. In other words, we can say that we have the same conditions as 90 percent of Turkey.
While we were preparing for IELTS, we did not go to private IELTS courses, but we worked regularly at home in the evenings for about two months.. You don’t need to buy the tests on the British Council’s own site for this, you can google ‘IELTS Sample Test’ and review them, or you can print out these tests and answer them by taking time at home.. This is how we prepared for IELTS, and 7.5 out of 9 points we got as a result of the test were sufficient for the applications.. It’s best to take sample tests online to see what your level is and decide if a special course is needed.. We just wanted to say that there is no obligation to ‘print money for the course’.. Was there a course 10 years ago, my dear, when people were rushing abroad!
Personal Statement (Letter of Intent):
We came to another document that every school wants, and probably the most important one.. When schools evaluate your application, of course, they evaluate all the documents, but the document they care most about is the ‘Personal Statement’ that you wrote.. Because this is the document that reflects you and that you can tell your troubles about.. In addition, if you have any pluses (for example, volunteer activities during the university period, etc.) that will make them accept you, you should write them down so that they will attract attention.. Or if you have an excuse to turn a negative situation into a positive. For example, my grade point average was below 2.5 (aah! laziness), but in my letter of intent, I mentioned that the law faculty I studied was one of the best and most difficult law faculties in Turkey, and that even an average of less than 2.5 was above the general semester average.. I don’t know if it worked, but it sounded like a good excuse.
There are other things to consider when writing your letter, of course.. First of all, don’t type ‘Personal Statement’ on Google and steal sentences from the first example you come across Because these schools receive hundreds of applications and it is important that your letter has original content, they can easily understand that the sentences are quoted from elsewhere.
University of Colombia is on its website. He mentioned the things to be considered while writing a letter of intent.. We have taken them into account, and if we summarize here;
Your introductory sentence and how you start your paragraphs are very important.. If you find a good introductory sentence, the rest is easy. You need to be positive and avoid using ‘but’ sentences.. Don’t make too familiar quotes. Avoid talking about your high school leadership memories and don’t over-praise yourself. You can also skip details such as how important your family or religion is to you.. And don’t make it too long, try to fit it into 1000 words. The rest is freedom, the rest is up to you!
How to Prepare a Reference Letter?
Most schools in Europe require two reference letters at the time of application. Although the reference letter is most often obtained from your university professors, some schools may require you to have one from your university professor and the other from any employer.
If you are going to ask a professor to write a reference letter for you personally, the deadline is one of the actual ones. better say two weeks ago. A reference letter that is extremely important to us, of course, is not important for the teachers and they can forget to write it when they say it, you are waiting for a letter from the teacher like you are waiting for Godot! Also, if your teacher is going to write the letter completely in this way, tell him to write the name of the school and the department you are applying to in the letter, so that the school you are applying to thinks that you take it seriously and that the letter is not a printed reference letter sent to every school.. Of course, in this option, you need to have as many reference letters as you will apply to many schools.. Anyway now!
Sometimes (in lucky circumstances) teachers can say, my daughter, son, you bring summer for me, I just sign it.. So you can praise yourself as you please (without exaggeration) and write what a graduate major would like to hear.. If you are sincere with the teacher you will ask for a reference letter, you can also make this offer, in the form of “would you sign it if I write it”.. We were lucky and we made our reference letters ourselves and took them to our professors for signature only.
If you are going to request a reference letter from a foreign teacher by mail, you can click here for a useful link about it
What you need to pay attention to Let’s talk about a few more things
First of all, if you are sending documents by post, not by e-mail, make sure you write your e-mail address correctly in the application forms.. Oh dear, why don’t we write it wrong, it happened to us, we know from there! Umut sent his documents to Stadelschule, where he is currently doing his master’s degree, by mail, and he wrote his e-mail address incorrectly. How many times did the guys send e-mails, but of course to the wrong address! We almost couldn’t come to Frankfurt!
There is also the translation issue.. All of your documents must be in English. When issuing documents, do they only want them to be translated into English by a sworn translator or do they want you to have them certified by a notary public?. If you need a translation of a document at the last moment, there are online sworn translator websites that work 24/7.. They translate your document in 1-2 hours. If you need such a site, you can try here. By the way, especially in notarized transactions, since the state charges a lot of transaction fees, the translation prices may seem a bit expensive, but this translation site does not originate.. Let’s say this too.
Some schools want to Skype you when evaluating your application.. If you receive such an e-mail, try not to get excited and if they ask you for the day and time you are available, do not make an appointment for the next day with that gas! They never asked me, but most of the architecture master’s programs that Umut applied to asked for a Skype interview, and we told the available date a few days later so we prepared a little in the meantime.
On Skype, they usually ask you to tell a little bit about yourself and They ask why you chose that particular school.. In this way, after general questions, they scratch your social side and ask about the magazines you follow regularly, your favorite architects or your hobbies.. If you think you will get very excited, you can write down the answers to such questions in a place where they will not be seen on the screen.. Schools sometimes make the final decision during the Skype interview and at the end of the meeting, they can say ‘thank you X, you have been accepted to the master’s program’ by saying ÇAT! Be prepared for this, too, and avoid making awkward moves as soon as you receive the news of admission..
If at the end of the interview they said that they will notify you soon, you can write a polite thank you email after closing Skype. Stuff like this is always a plus in Europe! If you’d like to read some ‘tips’ about the Skype interview, here are some good suggestions and we totally agree.
General Information on Fees for Masters
Of course There is also this part of the job… Actually, we were hesitant to write about how much a Master’s in Europe would cost you on average, because all the costs are very variable.. The program you apply for can be free or 20.000 Euros.. Or you may have to pay 1000 Euros per month depending on the cost of the city you go to, but if there is a state dormitory in the same city, this may decrease to 200 Euros.. That’s why we didn’t want to mislead anyone by making an average budget.. But on the other hand, naturally, the first thought of everyone (and we too) was always the financial side of this business.. That’s why we did one more research before writing this part of the article and (we have a problem with original content) here we go to the ‘completely emotional’ part of the article
First of all, let’s talk about this in Europe. If you are applying to a country whose native language is not English, let’s say you are applying to France, you have two options; You can apply for a program in English, or if you have a good and sufficient level of French to study, you can apply for a French-medium master’s program.. If you can apply for a French master’s you are in luck because you have a good chance of finding a free program. The reason is that these programs are usually not for foreigners but for their own students, and those at state universities are usually free.. You can study by paying a semester fee (around 300-500 Euros) like a regular university student.. Of course, in order for you to consider this option, you will need to demonstrate the minimum level of French required by the university at the time of application for master’s degree, in our example this probably means getting at least a B2 from the DELF exam.
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Let’s come to the second and more preferred option, which we also made.. In other words, to apply for master’s programs in Europe with English as the medium of instruction.. If you are applying to a master’s program in English, unfortunately, the program is likely to be paid, and the program fees vary from country to country.
Schools’ Fees for Master’s Degree
While we were doing our graduate research, we were interested in law and architecture fields.. While doing this, we researched about 30 schools per head.. The schools we found were mostly in England, Ireland, the Netherlands, Switzerland and Germany. Among these 5 countries, the UK and Switzerland are the two countries with the most expensive graduate program fees, and the annual fee of an English program you will find in these countries is unfortunately less than 12.000-15.000 Euros.. And as many people think, getting a master’s degree in Germany is not free at all universities.. There are very serious discounts for EU citizens, but for us non-European citizens, the majority of English master’s programs in Germany are paid. As an example, you can view the fee table for all departments of Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland, for 2016-2017.. The difference in pricing between EU Citizens and us non-European citizens is also visible.. Unfortunately, we paid a similar fee to the master’s degree we did in Germany.. But don’t give up, keep doing a good research until you find a school that fits your budget or is completely free!
Let’s see what you can do if you don’t know the language of the country you are applying to and the fees for English programs do not fit your budget.. (We will write the scholarship case separately)
Before applying to the master’s program, which is the most common in our environment in Germany, you can come to the country for 5-6 months, receive intensive language training, come to the language level desired by the program, and receive free German masters. were the applicants. Imagine that the application deadline for the German program you want to apply to is May 2017, but you do not speak German.. In this case, you can start from scratch with an intensive language course in November 2016 and reach the desired German level in a period of 6 months until May 2017, and you prepare your German proficiency certificate for the application date.. We have friends who do this and believe me it’s not hard.. Of course, for this, you need to find a suitable language school, arrange accommodation for 6 months, and consider the possibility of not being accepted to the school you applied to, despite everything.. If you decide to consider this option, you can find the link of my German course, which I also attended and which I am satisfied with.
The second option we will say is if you have graduated from departments such as international relations, law, business and economics. you will be interested. If you have graduated from these departments and you want to choose a master’s program related to the European Union (for example, European Union Law), these university programs are generally supported by the European Union and are very likely to be free or provide you with a scholarship.. To give an example, when I applied to the ‘LL.M in European Union Law’ program of Maastricht University in the Netherlands, they immediately gave a scholarship even though the program was normally paid.. You can write this in a corner of your mind and search for master’s programs especially related to the European Union.
Another program we encountered was the Master of Architecture of Maastricht University.. You apply to Maastricht University – Zuyd Academy for this and the program has the following advantage:. Since it is part-time, it takes 4 years to complete the master’s degree and you can find a job during this time, and it helps you to find a job at school.. In this way, you can at least cover your own living expenses for 4 years.
Of course, free English programs are not limited to these two options, but since we wrote our own experiences, we avoided writing programs that we do not know.
Appendix 1:
In Germany, some public universities’ master’s programs are free, while others are not.. For example, Goethe University, where I did my master’s degree, is a German State University and all undergraduate programs are free.. But master’s programs vary from faculty to faculty, and the master’s program I went to, ‘LL.M in Finance’, was paid.. That’s why we avoid generalizations, you see.
Important annex 2:
Some graduate programs are ‘2 years and part-time’. In other words, they divide the curriculum, which is essentially 1 year, into two years.. So you can work while you study at the same time.. If you plan to work at the same time as your master’s degree, ‘2-year part-time’ programs will be very useful for you.
Before writing about scholarships, let’s talk about two sites that we constantly follow.. Mladiinfo and Youthhop are two websites dedicated to the discovery of opportunities by young people, and the scholarship section constantly publishes the current scholarship opportunities of various universities.. An unthinkable university in Denmark may have scholarship programs and you may be missing it without realizing it.. That’s it, these two sites work, and you can constantly check to see if there is a program suitable for you.. Two of our close friends applied to the scholarships they learned through Mladiinfo and are now living happily in their new country.
Scholarship options for postgraduate studies abroad
As for general scholarships; As you know, the European Union – Jean Monnet Scholarship, which young people in Turkey benefit the most and sends many young people to study abroad every year. You can find all the details about the scholarship on the website http://www.jeanmonnet.org.tr.
Another scholarship is the scholarship given by the German Government to foreign students coming to Germany for postgraduate studies. DAAD scholarship. This scholarship is also given in Turkey through TEV. Application requirements and deadlines may change each year.. If you want to apply, you can find all kinds of information by clicking here.
There is also the Konrad – Adenauer Association that provides scholarships in Germany, but you need to be fluent in German to apply for this scholarship.. You can access the association’s page here and read the details.
That’s all we know about the scholarship.. We applied to DAAD for a scholarship, it didn’t happen to either of us, but we have friends around us who can get this scholarship.. Therefore, if you intend to go to Germany, make sure to apply, see if it comes out!
We think that’s all we have to say about the application process.. You prepare the documents, you pay the application fee if any, and the job is waiting for the answers! !
As one of our favorite self-helpers said, ‘Your goals should excite you!’ we would love to create the excitement of ‘it’s actually very easy’.
Good application to everyone!
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