International Programmes 2023/2024

Wildau Foundation Year – Wildau for You Wildau Foundation Year – Wildau for You

Technical University of Applied Sciences Wildau • Wildau

Unfortunately, this course has already ended.

Teaching language
  • German
  • English
Date(s)
  • September 2023 - August 2024
  • March 2024 - August 2025
Description/content

Wildau Foundation Year (WFY) is a 1-year or a 1.5-year study preparation programme for international students, facilitating their entry into the German academic world through preparatory studies. The core elements of WFY are language studies (Colloquial and Technical/Academic German) and subject-specific courses in IT, Mathematics, Physics, and Business/Economics. This integrative, modularised academic programme prepares international students for their studies at the Technical University of Applied Sciences Wildau (TH Wildau) and partner universities. With regard to facilitating the integration of international students, WFY has two key aspects:

  • academic integration, preparing for a successful start of studies in Germany, including preparatory studies in language, specific subjects, and academic methods
  • social and cultural integration, including joint activities for international and German students and support for international students to assist them in finding their way in their new environment

The WFY follows two professional tracks, engineering and business, geared specifically towards the courses offered at TH Wildau. The programme team supports participants in selecting a course of study tailored to their professional interests. It offers them the opportunity to develop their subject-specific knowledge and language skills in order to meet the requirements of their chosen degree programme after the completion of the study preparation programme. WFY offers international students a preview of different undergraduate study programmes.

The Wildau Foundation Year offers training and support in:

  • acquisition of technical and colloquial German
  • language instruction focusing on the terminology of the Bachelor's courses following the final exam of WFY
  • ability to organise studies independently
  • methodology in academic reading and writing
  • cross-cultural competences
  • communication, presentation, and research skills

The programme runs for either two or three semesters and comprises three main areas of competence:

  • German language skills up to level C1
  • competences aiming at engineering and business studies
  • cross-cultural competences and scientific methodologies as well as learning techniques, media literacy, research skills, and presentation skills

Language training and specialised courses are the focus of each semester.

In the 1-year programme, colloquial and academic German is supplemented by academic English as well as subject-specific and laboratory courses.

In the 1.5-year-programme, the first semester consists of colloquial German language classes only. In the second and third semesters, academic German, the subject-specific and laboratory courses are mandatory elements of the WFY programme.

The lectures are supported by field trips to companies, research institutions, and museums as well as political and cultural institutions in the Berlin-Brandenburg metropolitan region.

Course components
  • General preparation for studies
  • Subject-specific preparation
  • Preparation for academic working methods
  • Orientation "Living in Germany"
  • Excursions
  • Preparation for entrance examinations
  • Language course
  • Intercultural training
Recognised language exams offered (e.g. DSH, TestDaF, TOEFL)
No
Do course participants have student status?
Yes
Does this course involve taking the university entrance examination or does the course specifically prepare students for this examination?
Yes
Preparation for degree programmes
  • Bachelor's degree
Preparation for subject groups
  • Engineering
  • Law, Economics and Social Sciences
Further information on subsequent admission to degree programmes/guaranteed admission

Technical University of Applied Sciences Wildau has two departments:

  • Business, Information Science and Law
  • Engineering and Natural Sciences

Students graduating from the Wildau for You (WFY) programme can apply for the study subject of their choice after successfully passing the final WFY exams and the German language exam DSH (Deutsche Sprachprüfung für den Hochschulzugang - the German language exam for admission to a university).

Costs

1-year programme (requires B1 certificates in both German and English): 10,200 EUR (+ 861 EUR living costs/month)

This price includes
  • Course fees
  • Course fees for language course
  • Accommodation
  • Meals
  • Accompanying programme
Costs (alternative package)
1.5-year programme (no German language competence needed): 11,400 EUR (+ 861 EUR living costs/month)
This price includes (alternative package)
  • Course fees
  • Course fees for language course
  • Accommodation
  • Meals
  • Accompanying programme
Further information regarding the price

The tuition fee includes all costs for participation in the programme, including a blocked account for one year or one and a half years with 861 EUR monthly (includes teaching fee, costs for examination and language test, teaching materials, semester ticket, and administrative cost but excludes visa fees, pocket money, and registration fee).

After the tuition fee has been paid, applicants will receive their final admission confirmation together with a bank statement proving that they have paid the university the amount for the blocked account and proof of health insurance.

Academic admission requirements

The programme addresses international applicants who are interested in studying in Germany, but are not yet eligible to study at a German university. In order to join the 1-year programme, applicants need German and English language skills at a level B1, according to the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR). For the 1.5-year programme, no German language competence is needed, but English language skills need to be at a level B2, according to CEFR.

In addition, applicants must prove:

  • Successful completion of secondary school / high school in their home countries, international school graduation certificates will be compared with German university admission criteria
  • WFY applicants from China must have passed the GaoKao Exam with the following results:
    • Level 1/ level 2 applicants will be admitted after passing an oral interview and a written test prepared by the TH Wildau. Afterwards, the applicant has to join the APS procedure.
  • Appropriate school graduation certificates may be valued differently according to the respective country. Specific information will be provided upon registration.
Language requirements

The Wildau Foundation Year addresses school graduates lacking German higher education admission requirements. Applicants for the 1-year WFY programme must have a proven knowledge of both German and English proficiency at level B1 according to CEFR. Applicants for the 1.5-year WFY programme can join the WFY programme without basic knowledge of German language, but they must have English proficiency at level B2 according to CEFR.

Do applicants require a higher education entrance qualification recognised in Germany?
No
Do applicants have to have already been admitted to a study programme at your university?
No
Submit application to

https://www.th-wildau.de/studieren-weiterbilden/studienvorbereitung/aus-dem-ausland/wildau-foundation-year/application-process/

Is accommodation organised?
Accommodation is arranged by the organiser.
Type of accommodation

The accommodation for WFY participants will be located either in Wildau, Königs Wusterhausen / Niederlehme, or Berlin.

Meals

The student accommodation at TH Wildau provides communal kitchens in which students can prepare breakfast and supper. Supermarkets, where students can buy food and soft drinks, are within walking distance of the dorms.
For lunch, the cafeteria ("Mensa" in German) offers a regular choice of four different meals, including one vegetarian meal.

Is a social and leisure programme offered?
Yes
Description of social and leisure programme

Orientation week, excursions, sport courses, etc.

Free internet access
Yes
Support in visa matters
Yes
Pick-up service from train station/airport
Yes

Technical University of Applied Sciences Wildau

Content Bild

The Technical University of Applied Sciences Wildau (TH Wildau) is one of four universities of applied sciences in the state of Brandenburg. By combining the familiarity of a small, compact campus with its proximity to the international metropolis of Berlin, TH Wildau offers the best of both worlds.

A modern campus university on Berlin's doorstep

The university opened its doors in 1991 with just 17 students in the mechanical engineering degree programme. Today, there are around 3,600 students, ensuring that TH Wildau keeps its familiar atmosphere. On a modern campus with a direct rail connection to Berlin, aspiring academics enjoy an ideal environment for their studies in a range of disciplines covering the natural sciences, engineering, economics, law, business administration, and management.

Practical and application-oriented

The practical orientation of the degree programmes is one of the distinctive characteristics of TH Wildau. Students can carry out practical exercises and experiments with top-quality laboratory and computer technology. An optimal study environment allows creativity and enthusiasm so that research can flourish.

Close interaction between the university and the economy

Its potential for scientific innovation and development is what makes TH Wildau a desirable partner for innovative small and medium-sized businesses as well as large international firms.

Collaborations include giving input into designing the curricula for our degree programmes, project work for students within the companies, and joint research activities. This allows students to gain valuable practical experience in various fields even before they have completed their studies, thus making them an attractive choice for businesses when starting their careers.

Excellent international networking

An international and intercultural outlook shapes each working day at the university. Young people from over 80 countries around the world study at TH Wildau. About one in six students comes from abroad.

TH Wildau actively promotes international exchanges for students and researchers. It is for these reasons that the university cooperates with more than 75 partner universities around the world. TH Wildau has contacts through its traditional partnerships in Eastern and Southern Europe as well as through links to Asia, Latin America, the Arab world, and Africa. Students have a wide range of attractive options for spending a semester studying or working abroad, for learning foreign languages, and for interacting with other cultures.

A strong research university

TH Wildau has a strong research focus. In comparison to other small universities of applied sciences, it has done exceptionally well in obtaining third-party funding. Academics work in over 40 research groups dealing with the latest topics in applied and fundamental research. This has given the university its reputation as a centre of excellence in various scientific disciplines.

University location

TH Wildau is located approx. 45 minutes south-east from the centre of Germany's capital city Berlin.

Green campus with opportunities for relaxation

TH Wildau is a campus university. The teaching and administration buildings, dining room, and library are all located on an interconnected site by the Wildau S-Bahn train station, with direct access to Berlin. This makes studying in Wildau exceptionally convenient.

Modern infrastructure with tradition

The campus is located on a historic industrial and manufacturing site. Where once locomotives were built in vast production halls, today people study, teach, and research. Some of the teaching and laboratory facilities of the TH Wildau are housed within these historic walls, while others are housed in new buildings. This extraordinary mix of old and new continues to attract students and visitors with a passion for architecture.

Prizewinning university library

TH Wildau has a state-of-the-art library in an architecturally dazzling industrial production hall. In 2012, it was nominated "Library of the Year" and not without reason. With its wide range of forward-looking services, the library is quite innovative, and it is setting new standards by developing novel technical solutions for library organisation.

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