I sort of want to go. http://wapo.st/1c3zn7b
Sign me up.
It’s important to note that German etc. universities are quite different from American ones though. Part of the reason they are able to offer a free education is that they have gotten rid of a lot of the frills that many Americans consider to be part of the college experience. There are no large, fancy stadiums, and most students live at home (while those who don’t, live in minimalistic dorms). In many cases, the student:faculty ratio is also higher.
First of all, it is not free to study in Germany, you still have to buy textbooks, however they are sooo much cheaper than in the US.
There are plenty of huge stadiums in Germany, but they are mostly for Soccer games and not connected to the universities.
There aren’t many dorms, but most students just rent a apartment together with roommates. Mealplans are also way cheaper than here.
Partylife is not as crazy as it is in the US. By the time I attented the University I was already done with crazy party life, keep in mind, the legal drinking age in Germany is 16 for beer and wine.
Class sizes are big, When I attended law school, I had about 400 class mates.
Don’t forget, there are also no general education classes, you just study for your major. I went staight to law school after I finished “High School”.
Also keep in mind that lots of degrees are not offered in German schools, because you attend vocational schools for those degrees, for example business administration, nursing.
Yep, actually, the German universities never had those amenities.
Also, outside of Oxbridge and some other British unis with their tutorial system, you’re not going to get the personal attention/handholding/advising and student resources (like a writing center or career/job search center) that many American privates (especially LACs) pride themselves on. Think that Big State U is big, impersonal, and sink-or-swim? Many Europeans would think that students there are spoiled with luxuries, resources, and research opportunities. In most European universities, profs just deliver lectures. The students are expected to be self-motivated enough to learn the material by themselves. Undergraduate research opportunities range from rare to unheard-of.
There are plenty of free or nearly free colleges in the USA, just be the top caliber students and you will have several offers like this. it is a good idea to be top student money aside, if college is in plans. Thanks to the very low level of american HS, it is also very possible, no talents are required, just a bit of hard work…and this effort will have to be adjusted up at college anyway. I would not live in Europe even if they pay me to attend the college there.
Norway was most intriguing to me (personally, me, not my kids).
I wonder what the job prospect is for US grads of these foreign universities upon returning home. It might be a disadvantage because these schools do not have job placement services with good connections to US companies, unless you want to work for subsidiaries of German/Norwegian companies in the US, like BMW USA, then it might be a slight advantage.
@MiamiDAP I think you are right. I think it might be better to just go to a lower tier school in the US (for your SAT scores) that will offer you full scholarship because of the job factor. The article says Germany wants to attract foreign talent to work there, something tells me Germans won’t take kindly to foreigners coming in to get a free education on their dime then take their good jobs. The US is a lot more open in that regard.
It seemed what the Germans do not want is foreigners coming in to study for free then leave…they want more skilled, educated workers there?