<p>Be forewarned that the university experience in Germany is very, very different from the typical American college experience. There is not the focus on ‘campus life’ that you have here - people are assumed to be living at home/near family so they have their own support systems and the schools don’t have to provide it. Students are also assumed to be adults so there is no one from the school checking up on you should you not show up to class for a month and if you need help, it is entirely on you to get it. Close relationships with faculty are also less common because class sizes are larger and they use the ‘weeder’ function of testing to decide who advances in competitive subjects. Finally, you have to go in knowing what you plan to major in and if you change your mind and want to study something else, making that transition can set you back further.</p>
<p>That said, if you have a support system in Germany and are comfortable with living and working full time in another culture, it can be a wonderful experience. I know one American who is doing that (engineering) - but he is bi-lingual and bi-cultural. Even then, he’s been ‘adopted’ by his girlfriend’s local German family and they help him ‘navigate’ through some of the tougher part.</p>