Course Preparation
We are delighted that you are interested in studying at TU Dresden. Some criteria have to be satisfied before you can start the programme. The two most important requirements are sufficient German skills (not relevant for English taught Master's programmes) and an equivalent school or university qualification.
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Please find more information about the required German language skills. You can check whether your school-leaving certificate already qualifies you to study at a German university or whether you have to, for example, attend a preparatory college first in the DAAD admissions database or on the Anabin website of the Central Office for Foreign Education (ZAB).
Further information on the general university entry requirements
If you, as an international applicant, do not satisfy all the requirements for admission to your desired course, you can find information about what options TU Dresden offers for preparing yourself for the course linguistically and in terms of the subject here.:
Preparatory semester
To a limited extent, TU Dresden offers its future students the option of preparing for the DSH examination in a preparatory semester/preparatory course and taking this examination at TU Dresden. The participants of the preparatory semester are enrolled as students at TU Dresden. The preparatory semester is available only for foreign students.
Applicants for following degree programms can not participate at the preparatory course: Applicants for International Relations (Ba/MA), Molecular Biology and Biotechnology, Medicine, Dentistry, Public Health (MA) and Medical Radiation Sciences (MA) already need to provide sufficient german knowledge.
The preparatory semester includes the following modules:
- DHS preparatory course with country-specific phonetic training
- Tutoring programme for subject orientation
- Specialist communication in the course (only in the summer semester, also for students in the orientation semester) with four groups:
1. Engineering/Electrical Engineering (ENG)
2. Engineering/Mechanical Engineering (ENG)
3. Economics (ECON)
4. Humanities and Social Sciences (HUM/SOC)
The tutoring programme is conducted in November/December (winter semester) and May/June (summer semester) and encompasses three double periods.
The whole course lasts one semester (six months) and ends with the DSH in March or September.
Requirements for the application
In addition to good subject-specific performance, good intermediate German language skills are expected, i.e.:
- German B2 certificate or German B1 certificate in combination with a certificate of participation of a B2 course (as the admission test is at the level B2)
- Evidence of the following language certificates: the Goethe Institute Zentrale Mittelstufenprüfung (Intermediate Examination - ZMP) with at least "satisfactory"; the German Language Diploma of the Conference of State Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs Level 1, TestDaF with at least 14 points
Due to the high number of applicants for the preparatory semester, a written admission test (level B2) is conducted immediately before the start of the language course. You can repeat this test once. You can find an example of this admission test here.
Applicants who do not receive a place on the TU Dresden preparatory course have the opportunity to participate in a language course at TUDIAS or another language school in Dresden for a fee.
If the certificates for your previous education from your home country according to the assessment guidelines of the Conference of State Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs do not allow immediate admission to a university in Germany, the subject-specific university entrance qualification can be acquired by attending a preparatory college.
You can find country-specific information on university admission in the assessment guidelines of the Conference of State Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs in the Anabin database and in the DAAD admissions database.
The preparatory college (duration: 2 semesters) ends with the "Examination for the assessment of the qualification of foreign applicants for admission to a course at universities and universities of applied sciences in the Federal Republic of Germany" (assessment test).
The application for a place at the preparatory college takes place with the application for a place at the desired university. If you want to apply for the preparatory college at TU Dresden, you must already have level B1 German language skills.
TU Dresden sends its applicants to the Saxony State Preparatory College in Leipzig. Preparatory courses for all disciplines take place there. There is no fee for the course. Whilst attending the preparatory college, the students are enrolled at the University of Leipzig. However, there is a very limited number of places at the Saxony State Preparatory College in Leipzig, meaning that only the best applicants can get a place.
On request, applicants can also go to the state-recognised preparatory college in Dresden. There – in the so-called “T-course” – it is possible to prepare for mathematical, technical and scientific subjects (apart from biology). The course is subject to a charge (approx. 1900 euros per semester).
In both cases, an admission test must be passed before admission to the preparatory college:
- German test (the requirement is at least completed basic skills German B1 certificate).
- Mathematics test on knowledge acquired at school (only for economic, mathematical, technical and scientific subjects)
If you are unable to provide evidence of any German language skills, an application to TU Dresden is unfortunately not possible.
The minimum requirement for an application for the preparatory German course is the provision of a German B1 certificate + a certificate of participation of B2 course. For application for the preparatory college you need at least a B1 certificate. You have the option of applying for a so-called language course visa (in conjunction with a registration for a German course at a recognised language school) and thus of acquiring the necessary language skills in Germany.
Here, you can find a list of the language schools in Dresden.