Mar 28, 2025

New international school project launched: Visit to Romanian schools

Schulgebäude des Deutschen Goethe Kollegs in Bukarest

Cornelia Hesse from the International Office and Julia Paternoster from Student Marketing at TU Dresden visited schools with a connection to Germany (so-called DPS schools) in Romania on March 18 and 20 to facilitate a cooperation and promote studying at TU Dresden. The visit took place in two schools in Bucharest(Deutsches Goethe Kolleg) and Timișoara(Nikolaus-Lenau-Lyzeum) and offered the students not only valuable insights into the study opportunities at TU Dresden, but also a unique opportunity for international networking.

Direct contact with the target group is irreplaceable

The main focus of the visit was on promoting intercultural exchange and attracting talented students from Romania. The TUD staff showed the students and teachers the variety of degree programs, research projects and career opportunities and reported on student life in Dresden. They also included a special video message from a Romanian student at TU Dresden.

Vortragssaal voller Schüler, die einem Vortrag über die TUD zuhören

"These visits are an important step in building our cooperation and encouraging Romanian students to start their academic career at a German university. The opportunity to interact directly with the students and teachers builds trust and paves the way for sustainable cooperation," Cornelia Hesse summarized.

In addition to the information events for 11th and 12th grade students at both locations, discussions were also held with the school management and the German teaching staff in order to get to know the special features of the Romanian school system and the needs of the target group. For example, it is not uncommon for schools to operate a two-shift system because school buildings are too small, meaning that lessons are sometimes held until 8pm.

Gruppenfoto mit Lehrern des Lenau Lyzeums in Temeshwar, es sind fünf Personen zu sehen, 3 Frauen und 2 Männer.

"In times of increasing globalization, direct and personal contacts are a decisive factor in international university marketing. Romania has a strong tradition of academic excellence and also a large pool of German learners due to the numerous German-speaking minorities. Our aim is to inspire these talented young people to study at TU Dresden," explains Julia Paternoster.

Project collaboration and attracting international students

The visit is part of a DAAD project that aims to strengthen relations between German universities and international schools with a German focus. The so-called BIDS program focuses primarily on awarding scholarships to graduates of German Schools Abroad (DAS), German Profile Schools (DPS) and German Language Diploma Schools (DSD). These schools offer in-depth German lessons worldwide, and some even offer the opportunity to complete the German Abitur. This gives graduates direct access to higher education at TUD.

TU Dresden was already able to acquire a similar project with Latin American schools from 2022-24, which resulted in the TUD's first two international partner schools. Five schools from Romania, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic and Slovakia are now participating in the new project (2025-2027).

Long-term prospects

In the next three years, in addition to such school visits, the main plans are to support first-year students from the five project partner schools via BIDS scholarships and to support taster visits to TU Dresden by groups of students. Intensive online consultations for school classes and individual consultations round off the offer.

The first scholarship holders are expected to come to TU Dresden as early as the winter semester of 2025, with the application deadline for applicants with a German Abitur starting on June 1, 2025.

If you have any questions about the BIDS project at TU Dresden, please contact: