Freshman Institute – FH Aachen – GLOBAL OFFICE FOR STUDENT EXCHANGE

What is the Freshman Program ?

The Freshman Year is the simultaneous technical and linguistic bridge between schools in your home country and German university studies. We offer international applicants unique access to university programs in Germany.

In 1998 the Freshman Program was founded as an entry to English-language university programs in the North Rhine-Westphalian (NRW) public university system.
Since 2010 the Freshman Program offers the Higher Education Entrance Qualification Examination (Feststellungsprüfung) which enables students to apply to all university degree programs in Germany.

This program is, in many respects, unique in Germany. Participants from around the world live on campus and learn in small groups. This unique intercultural environment is the best preparation for life in today’s globalized world.

Nearly 400 Freshmen successfully complete the program each year.

University Studies in Germany

Those who hold the necessary German language knowledge (B1 certificate with 90%), can, after successful completion of the Freshman Year, take the Higher Education Entrance Qualification Examination (Feststellungsprüfung) and are eligible to apply to all German universities.

Since 1998, we offer applicants who have little or no previous knowledge of the German language and prefer to purse their university studies in English guaranteed admission at one of our partner universities.

Intensive language training is an integral component of the Freshman Program. Depending on appropriate academic performance in language and subject coursework, it is possible to change between programs.

The Freshman Program is, therefore, tailored specifically to the academic and language requirements of each field of study.

Intensive language training is an important component of all options in the Freshman program. Transfer from one program to another during the Freshman year is possible with good performance in academic or language courses.