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Knowledge of German

Deutsche Sprachprüfung für den Hochschulzugang (DSH)

The “Deutsche Sprachprüfung für den Hochschulzugang (DSH)” is the German language proficiency examination required for admission to universities. By passing this examination, international applicants must prove that they possess sufficient knowledge of the German language to successfully pursue an academic programme.

The written part of the examination is taken in one day at Heidelberg University, about two to three weeks before the start of lectures; you will be notified of the exact date in your letter of admission. The oral examination takes place on the third or fourth day after the written examination.

Participation in the DSH examination at Heidelberg University costs 50 Euros. The fee is paid in cash at the time of examination.

As a prerequisite for participation in the examination, applicants must already have been admitted to a degree programme starting in the following semester. It is not possible to take the DSH examination at Heidelberg University if admission to a degree programme has not been granted for the respective semester.

For further information on the DSH examination at Heidelberg University, please visit the websites of the Internationales Studienzentrum.

In order to be exempt from taking the DSH examination in accordance with the regulation framework for international applicants issued by the Conference of the Ministers for Education and Cultural Affairs (KMK), you need to submit one of the following certificates along with your application:

“Deutsches Sprachdiplom der Kultusministerkonferenz – Zweite Stufe” (ruling of the KMK from 16.03.1972 and 5.10.1973)
Registered “Deutsche Sprachprüfung für den Hochschulzugang (DSH-Stufe 2)” according to RO- DT of the HRK (ruling of the KMK from 25.6.2004 version of 17.11.11)
“Großes [or] Kleines Deutsches Sprachdiplom” of the Goethe Institute
“Zentrale Oberstufenprüfung” of the Goethe Institute
“Goethe-Zertifikat C2: GDS” of the Goethe Institute, issued from 01.01.2012
“Test Deutsch als Fremdsprache (TestDaF)”, if passed with a mark of TDN 4 or better in all of the examinations
“Zeugnis der Prüfung zur Feststellung der Eignung ausländischer Studienbewerber für die Aufnahme eines Studiums an den Hochschulen der Bundesrepublik Deutschland” (so-called “Feststellungsprüfung”)
an equivalent certificate based on a bilateral treaty with another country.

Students whose letter of admission contains the condition “Deutsche Sprachprüfung für den Hochschulzugang muss bestanden werden” cannot take the assessment test (“Einstufungstest”) or matriculate for a German Course as part of the Preliminary Course at Heidelberg University.

Special Requirements

Special German-language requirements for the degree programmes “Germanistik im Kulturvergleich” (Bachelor of Arts / Master of Arts), “Deutsche Philologie / Germanistik” (Bachelor of Arts) and “Deutsch” (State Examination/teacher training)

Students who have been granted admission to one of these programmes are only allowed to matriculate if they can substantiate proficiency in German by one of the following certificates within the matriculation period given in the letter of admission:

DSH examination passed at a German university with a mark of “2.9” or better (old marking system) or at least 78% (new tiered system)
“Kleines Deutsches Sprachdiplom” of the Goethe Institute with a mark of “2.9” or better
“Großes Deutsches Sprachdiplom” of the Goethe Institute with a mark of “bestanden” or better
“Zentrale Oberstufenprüfung” of the Goethe Institute with an overall mark of “2.9” or better
Goethe-Zertifikat C1 of the Goethe-Institut with an overall mark of “2.9” or better (issued from 01.01.2012)
Goethe-Zertifikat C2: Großes Deutsches Sprachdiplom of the Goethe-Institut (issued from 01.01.2012) with a mark of “bestanden” or better
“Deutsches Sprachdiplom der Kultusministerkonferenz – Zweite Stufe” with an overall mark of “2.9” or better
TestDaF examination at TestDaF level (TDN) “5” in “Schriftlicher Ausdruck” and “Leseverstehen”, and at least TestDaF level “4” in “Mündlicher Ausdruck” and “Hörverstehen”
written examination in the subject “German” attested in the school leaving certificate after the secondary level with a mark of “2.9” or better, if there is a respective bilateral treaty with the other country

written examination in the subject “German” passed with a mark of “2.9” or better in the “Prüfung zur Feststellung der Eignung ausländischer Studienbewerber für die Aufnahme eines Studiums an den Hochschulen der Bundesrepublik Deutschland” (so-called “Feststellungsprüfung”)

If a student has successfully completed a German Language and Literature programme of at least four years at a university abroad, he or she may request exemption from the DSH examination; the decision on whether exempt status is granted will be taken by the International Relations Office in agreement with the responsible commission of the Institute for German as a Foreign Language at Heidelberg University.

If none of the documents / certificates concerning the proficiency in German mentioned above is furnished, the applicant will be required to complete the DSH examination at Heidelberg University with the results / markings stipulated above prior to the beginning of his or her academic studies.

Special German-language requirements for the Magister programme in Law (LL.M. - Magister Legum) and the Master’s programme (“Konferenzdolmetschen” (Master of Arts)

Students who have been granted admission to one of these programmes are only allowed to matriculate if they can substantiate their proficiency in German by one of the following certificates within the matriculation period given in the notice of admission:

DSH examination passed at a German university with a mark of “2.5” or better (old marking system) or DSH level “3” (new tiered system)
“Kleines Deutsches Sprachdiplom” of the Goethe Institute with a mark of “2.5” or better
“Großes Deutsches Sprachdiplom” of the Goethe Institute with a mark of “bestanden” or better
“Zentrale Oberstufenprüfung” of the Goethe Institute with an overall mark of “2.5” or better
“Goethe-Zertifikat C2: GDS” of the Goethe Institute, issued from 01.01.2012, with an overall grade of “2.5” or better
“Deutsches Sprachdiplom der Kultusministerkonferenz – Zweite Stufe” with an overall mark of “2.5” or better
TestDaf examination at TestDaF level (TDN) “5” in all examinations
written examination in the subject “German” attested in the school-leaving certificate after the secondary level with a mark of “2.5” or better, if there is a respective bilateral treaty with the other country
written examination in the subject “German” passed with a mark of “2.5” or better in the “Prüfung zur Feststellung der Eignung ausländischer Studienbewerber für die Aufnahme eines Studiums an den Hochschulen der Bundesrepublik Deutschland” (so-called “Feststellungsprüfung”)

If a student has successfully completed a German Language and Literature programme of at least four years at a university abroad, he or she may request exemption from the DSH examination; the decision whether exempt status is granted will be taken by the International Relations Office in agreement with the Dean of the Faculty of Law at Heidelberg University.

If none of the documents / certificates substantiating the proficiency in German as mentioned above is furnished within the matriculation deadline at Heidelberg University, the applicant will be required to complete the DSH examination level “3” or better at Heidelberg University prior to the beginning of his or her academic studies.

Special German-language requirements for the degree programme “Deutsche Philologie / Germanistik” (Master of Arts)

Students who have been granted admission to this programme are only allowed to matriculate if they can substantiate their proficiency in German by one of the following certificates within the matriculation period given in the notice of admission:

DSH examination passed at a German university with a mark of “2.0” or better (old marking system) or at least 87% (new tiered system)
“Kleines Deutsches Sprachdiplom” of the Goethe Institute with a mark of “2.0” or better
“Großes Deutsches Sprachdiplom” of the Goethe Institute with a mark of “gut” or better
“Zentrale Oberstufenprüfung” of the Goethe Institute with an overall mark of “2.0” or better
“Goethe-Zertifikat C2: GDS” of the Goethe Institute, issued from 01.01.2012, with an overall grade of “2.0” or better
“Deutsches Sprachdiplom der Kultusministerkonferenz – Zweite Stufe” with an overall mark of “2.0” or better
TestDaf examination with at least TDN “19”, distributed as follows: TDN “5” in “Schriftlicher Ausdruck”, “Leseverstehen” and “Hörverstehen”; at least TDN “4” in “mündlicher Ausdruck”
written examination in the subject “German” attested in the school-leaving certificate after the secondary level with a mark of “2.0” or better, if there is a respective bilateral treaty with the other country
written examination in the subject “German” passed with a mark of “2.0” or better in the “Prüfung zur Feststellung der Eignung ausländischer Studienbewerber für die Aufnahme eines Studiums an den Hochschulen der Bundesrepublik Deutschland” (so-called “Feststellungsprüfung”)

If none of the documents / certificates concerning the proficiency in German mentioned above is furnished within the matriculation deadline at Heidelberg University, the applicant will be required to complete the DSH examination at Heidelberg University with the results / markings stipulated above prior to the beginning of his or her academic studies.

Admission to the German Course as Part of the Preparatory Course

Heidelberg University cannot guarantee a spot in the German Course or the Preparatory Course (“Studienkolleg”), even if admission was explicitly requested in the prospective student’s application. Due to limited capacities in these courses, only a few per cent of the applicants for a degree programme can be assigned a place in the German Course. In this case, the admission to a degree programme will be issued in combination with a spot in the German Course (in the scope of a Preliminary Course, so-called “Vorfachstudium”). The fee for the German Course as part of the Preliminary Course is 350 Euros per semester. The fee is paid in cash at the start of the semester at Heidelberg University.

The capacities in the preliminary course are very limited. Not all applicants for a German course can be admitted by the International Relations Office. An overview of the language courses offered at the “Internationales Studienzentrum” as well as information on prices and registration formalities can be found here.

Recognition of Study Achievements Completed Abroad

Study achievements completed at a university outside of Germany can be transferred and recognised for your study programme at Heidelberg University. In order to apply for recognition of study achievements, you must apply to the Examinations Office (“Prüfungsamt”) or the Dean’s Office (“Dekanat”) of the respective faculty. Your prior periods of studies should be documented in as much detail as possible. Copies of the study certificates and other documents must be submitted, including a German or English translation if necessary. The individual departmental student advisors (“Fachstudienberater”) can provide further, more detailed information on the process of recognition of study achievements.

Please note that in the degree programmes Dentistry, Law, Medicine, Pharmacology and Psychology special institutions (not the departmental student advisors) are responsible for the recognition of study achievements. Please submit your application for recognition of study achievements completed abroad to the following institutions:

Medicine

Landesversorgungsamt Nordrhein-Westfalen
Landesprüfungsamt für Medizin, Psychotherapie und Pharmazie
P.O. Box 10 34 55
D-40025 Düsseldorf
Phone: +49-(0)211-4584-0 or +49-(0)211-4584-732

http://www.brd.nrw.de/gesundheit_soziales/landespruefungsamt/

Pharmacology

Hessisches Landesprüfungsamt für Heilberufe
Walter-Möller-Platz 1
60439 Frankfurt am Main
Phone: +49 (0) 69-15677-12

Dentistry

a) Student applicants with main place of residence in Baden-Württemberg and/or a study place at a higher-education institution in Baden-Württemberg:

Regierungspräsidium Stuttgart
Referat 26
Ruppmannstraße 21
D-70565 Stuttgart
Phone: +49-(0)711-904-3243

b) Student applicants with main place of residence outside of Baden-Württemberg and without a study place at a higher-education institution in Baden-Württemberg:

Thüringer Landesverwaltungsamt
Referat 720
Landesprüfungsamt für akademische Heilberufe
Weimarplatz 4
D-99423 Weimar
Phone: +49-(0)3643-585 or +49-(0)3643-585-7309

Law

Prüfungsamt der Juristischen Fakultät
Friedrich-Ebert-Anlage 6-10
D-69117 Heidelberg

http://www.jura.uni-heidelberg.de/fakultaet/pruefungsamt.html

Psychology

Psychologisches Institut der Universität Heidelberg
Prüfungssekretariat
Hauptstraße 47-51
69117 Heidelberg

http://www.psychologie.uni-heidelberg.de/service/pruefungsamt/index.shtml

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Latest Revision: 2013-04-05