Question about Germany's education system?

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t_maia2000

First, you can only go to university if you have Abitur. You normally get Abitur after 12 years of school, graduating from gymnasium.

That said, there are other ways to gain entry to a university (uni) or a university of applied sciences (Fachhochschule or FH), especially for Realschule graduates.

When a student graduates from Realschule or Hauptschule, s/he has either the option of taking up an three-year apprentice-ship, attending courses leading to a professional degree or doing further education.

The three year apprentice-ship is the norm. Apprentices work part-time in a shop or factory and attend Berufsschule at the same time, either 2 days a week or in blocks of 6 weeks at a time. They have a contract of apprenticeship with an employer, get paid, pay social security and taxes. Exams are typically held by the Chamber of Commerce or the Chamber of Crafts, which also award the degree.

Attending courses to obtain a professional degree is the second option. The student enrolls at a school, often a Berufsschule or private professional school. For some jobs this is the only way in. School is full-time and usually lasts 1 or 2 years. At a private school the student has to pay fees, at a state school the classes are free. Exams are held by the school or the state.

For graduates of Realschule (not Hauptschule!) who have above average grades it is possible to enter Gymnasium. This is usually noted on their graduation certificate. They then have two options: Enrolling at a normal Gymnasium or enrolling at a specialised, professional Gymnasium. At a normal Gymnasium they will often have to repeat grade 10, joining students who have been attending the school since grade 5 or 7. Majors will be history, maths, german, 1 or 2 foreign languages, science, geography,etc.

At a specialised Gymnasium (Fachgymnasium) they join with other Realschule graduates. The specialised Gymnasiums are often part of a Berufsschule and special subjects are taught. At a Berufsschule for Business and Administration taking accounting and economics as majors for your Abitur is mandatory, at a Fachgymnasium at a Berufsschule for Electronics you will have technical engineering and construction as majors. Apart from these subjects which are not taught at normal Gymnasiums students get taught the same things: maths, history, science, etc. The main reason why student enroll at Fachgymnasium is that in order to enroll at a normal Gymnasium you need to have had lessons in 2 foreign languages during Realschule. Students who had only one foreign language get the chance to take up a second at Fachgymnasium.

Now the other option of getting into college, aside from Abitur:
For holders of a professional degree (either from apprenticeship or 2-year full-time professional school) who have a certain average of grades it is possible to take a one-year course allowing them to attend a Fachhochschule (University of Applied Sciences). (Fachhochschule is not the same as university, these colleges are considered to be a bit below the level of university.) The graduation certificate for this course is called Fachabitur or Fachhochschulreife and is equivalent to a leaving certificate of 11th grade of Gymnasium. It does not allow entry to a full university and it only allows study of a subject related to the field of previous professional expertise. (I.e. if you trained in business admin before you'll do the one-year course focusing on business admin, with classes related to the subject. You can then study business admin at a University of Applied Sciences.)

This is the basics, it gets even more complicated when several states (German Laender) are involved or if you want to take classes part-time (that's possible) or don't have the necessary grades the first time around. If this is more than a theoretical question you need to talk to an expert at German Arbeitsagentur.

If you have the choice, it is always best to enroll at Gymnasium (either normal or special) after graduation from Realschule. Abitur is the highest general education degree in Germany, it opens most doors and gives a lot of status. It is the shortest, most direct way into university and allows the study of all subjects at uni. Some of the things that are taught at Gymnasium are equivalent to taking general education classes at a college in the US, so classes are tough - but it is worth it.

eelliko

Universities require Abitur, Fachhochschulen (=colleges) require Fachabitur (obtained at a Gymnasium one year before Abitur).
There are a few exceptions to this rule, but they are very rarely applied.Those who hold a Realschul degree and want to go to university need to get Abitur first.There are two types of Realschul degree, only the higher will allow you to enter Gymnasium.If your degree is below that, you'd need to work your way up first.

EDIT : Berufsschule is not a normal school but part of an apprenticeship.Apprentices attend Berufsschule for two days a week.It does not give any degree comparable to school degrees.

Fenris Troll Ripper JPA RT ATL Â®

Im not positive but I believe you need to have completed at the Gymnasium first but do not quote me on it. After your Gymnasium education you can look into a University, they do not really use the word College as we do in the USA.

Helia

I can explain it to you because I am from Gernany and I am living there!

at first you have to visit 4 years the primary school,after that there are many kinds of school systems where you can go.I will list them to you in the order of the best school system to the worst:
1.Gymnasium
2.Realschule
3.hauptschle
4.Sonderschule
5.FÃ¶rderschule

Then you have Privatschule for parents who want that their children don't attend the public schools and the gesamtschule is a mix of all this kinds of school but everyone knows that a gesamtschule is really bad.....

In all school systems except gymnasium(5-12) you have to attend school untill class 10.But sonderschule and fÃ¶rderschule are really unsteady so you can never be sure!After class 12 at gymnasium you get your abitur and you can go ti a university!!!after hauptschule and realschule or gesamtschule you can go to berufschule and make a ausbildung(ausbildung=apprenticeship)...... you also can try to get your abitur although you didn't attend a gymnasium.But it is nearly impossible!!!!

Ladyhawke

A student must have Abitur before going to University.

Realschule: (Mittlere-Reife)
After a student completes the Realschule, (5-10 grade) he/she usually goes to a school called, 'FOS... Fachoberschule', to complete 'Abitur', if he/she wants to. This can last two to three years, depending on whether the student is allowed to start in the 11th or 12th class. Many students also find a job which is easier with a 'Realschule' qualification.

Hauptschule: (Quali or Mittlere-Reife)
The lowest school in the tier of the German school system. The 'Hauptschule' usually ends in the 9th class. If you complete the 9th class, one has something called a 'Quali'.
The Hauptschule also has a program for its better students called the 'M-Zweig' or 'Mittlere Reife-Klassen'. These students complete the 10th class while at the Hauptschule to get a supposed equivalent to the 'Realschule' qualification. (I say supposed, because I talked to a student who received it, and he told me that it really wasn't really treated the same...only on paper.) After completing the 'M' qualification, a student from the 'Hauptschule' is allowed to apply to FOS, and usually begins with the 11th class....then Abitur...then University.

Students have many choices once they complete their education. They can immediately start working, or they can go to 'Berufsschule' to learn a trade and then start working. After they have started their apprenticeship; however, and decide to go back to school because they want to go to university, then they go through a program called, 'BOS'...
Berufoberschule. This school is only for students with previous work experience and is the equivalent of 'FOS'. (I think they created this program, because the students are generally older and they have been out of school for awhile.)

BOS also starts at the 11th class and some students with a 'Hauptschule' qualification, must take a test or take extra classes before being allowed to start 'BOS'. BOS usually lasts three years, like FOS....for the Abitur qualification...then a student is allowed to go to university.

Everything looks good on paper, but it's very difficult to go from the 'Hauptschule' to University. The quality of the teachers and the education in the 'Hauptschule' is lower, and many students struggle in Math, German, and English in BOS or FOS while trying to attain Abitur. (Translation: They rarely make it through BOS or FOS.)

So, to answer your question specifically....No, everyone does not have to go to Gymnasium to go to University...there are other ways....and no....when a student finishes the Hauptschule or Realschule, they don't transfer to the Gymnasium.

The Gymnasium is the 'easiest' way to go directly to the Gymnasium, but there are other ways for less fortunate students who are forced to attend lower schools, (in Bayern, i.e..Bavaria, the teachers decide if your child is worthy to attend the Realschule or Gymnasium...and, of course, 2/3 of the children honored with going to the Hauptschule are foreign).

For me, the educational system in Germany, has been an unnecessary, uphill battle in humiliation for me and my children.

Alex S

Sadly there's no easy answer to that. The German
education system is much more complex and
complicated than it already looks.

Generally speaking you have to either pass Gymnasium or
gain the degree through evening school to gain access to
any of the two German university programs.

There're exceptions, special job qualifications and extra
courses that allow access to a "FachuniversitÃ¤t" though.

"Berufsschule" has not much to do with the German
education system in general. It's part of what's called
"Duales System". A lot of job training programs require
to pass courses there. If it's required it's required for
everyone. No matter what school system (s)he visited.

pasanjes

I have always heard that you need a so-called "Abitur". Don't know though whether the "Berufsschule" delivers such an "Abitur"...

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