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Studying in Germany: The Perils Ahead
(The article was originally posted on my portfolio website, neschetna.com)
I cannot stress the importance of planning ahead! All in all, you should really start thinking about studying in Germany about a year prior to your intended studies. Seems long? Not when broken down into sections. There are a number of things you need to do before your candidacy is looked at.
Let’s assume you’ve just decided that Germany is the right place for you.
Choice of University
The basic, the cornerstone of it all. Where to apply? Which major? Which city? Hochschule or Uni? These are questions I’ll let you answer yourself, but take a moment to consider some facts. If you’re just finished with Grade 11, you will not be able to go to a German university straight away. There are exceptions, such as applying to an art academy that doesn’t really need your grades, it needs to see your artistic talent. German children study about two years more in an institution they call Abitur, sort of like the British A-levels. Now, as an international student, you wont be able to join an Abitur (although prove me if I’m wrong here, I don’t know the fact.), but the Germans have a different place for us. Call it a college, it’s called the Studienkolleg, a two-semester place with four to five subjects that will end with exams to test your language skills in addition to your lessons. As it’s a preparatory college, your German language skills can be lesser than if you applied to university. Following the two semesters, it will be raised until you’re ready to pass the language exam.
This Studienkolleg will take a year, after which you’ll be able to continue onwards with your destined major.
If you’ve already done two semesters at your local university, that is a different matter and usually these semesters can be counted as a substitute for the Abitur/Studienkolleg. Please consult the university.
The way it worked with me, I applied straight to the university I wanted to attend. In my application I said that I would need the Studienkolleg. Similarly, when my invitation to the place arrived, it was actually a conditional acceptance to the university, on condition that I attended the Studienkolleg and passed their exams. See how it works?
This is done because the Studienkolleg system has different course-lines for different students who wish to study different things. A biology major wont need to learn accounting. An art student wouldn’t need maths. Some of these courses are the T-Kurs, the W-Kurs and the S-Kurs. There are a couple of others more. Each one differs slightly on the subjects it teaches and the entrance exams that you will need to take – some will have German, others will have that and Mathematics.
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Wacom Through the Ages
My trusty Graphire 2 has been with me ever since my 16th birthday – and that’s in 2004! Most of the damage you can see was caused by the mouse that came with it; it died several years ago, unable to withstand the test of being thrown off the table by cats. The rest of it, pen included, has aged rather well.
After being resurrected from my shelf in February and being used on a weekly basis, I feel it’s time for some updated shots of its exterior. Previously, I took shots in 2007, so it’s a graceful age of four years. I’m still amazed it runs perfectly, albeit now that I’m using it, I find its resolution, in comparison with the Intuos line, pretty low.
2011
See this trusty pen? It’s the state of the original nib! I’m not familiar with how other Wacom lines are going, but with my pen I guess it was a matter of getting ground down to some point and stopping there. It’s still very usable.
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