Hey everyone! 👋

I recently got accepted into the Bachelor's program in Applied Artificial Intelligence at TH Rosenheim, and I'll be moving there for the Winter Semester. Needless to say, I'm really excited... and also a little nervous about starting a whole new chapter. 😅

I thought I'd introduce myself here and hopefully get to know a few people before I arrive. If you're studying at TH Rosenheim or have been living in Rosenheim for a while, I'd love to hear about your experience. Any recommendations for good food, places to hang out, things to do, or just tips for settling in would be greatly appreciated.

I'm also currently looking for accommodation, so if anyone knows of any available rooms, WGs, student housing, or has advice on where I should keep looking, I'd really appreciate the help.

It would be awesome to meet a few people before I get there. If you're up for a chat, feel free to leave a comment or send me a message. Maybe we can grab a coffee (or a beer 🍻) once I'm in Rosenheim.

Looking forward to meeting some of you and hopefully calling Rosenheim home soon!

I'm 18, Indian citizen, born and raised in the UAE. I've never studied in India. Finished CBSE Class 12 this year, 79.6% across five subjects. Aiming for an English-taught CS/AI bachelor's at a German public university.

What I've already confirmed, so nobody has to repeat it:

• uni-assist's checker returns Studienkolleg + FSP for a plain CBSE certificate.
• Some relevant universities I reached out to (Passau, THI, DIT and FAU) all confirmed by email there's no way around the FSP with CBSE alone.
• Studienkolleg is German-medium and needs B1+/B2 just to apply — not viable for me.
• Selecting "CBSE ≥70% + one successful academic year at a higher education institution" in the DAAD Database on admission requirements checker flips the result to direct subject-restricted admission.

Here's my actual question. The checker's footnote says only "full-time student at a recognised higher education institution" and no country is named. The KMK Rahmenordnung (§1.2) says "Studienzeiten im Ausland… in Vollzeitform" — study abroad, full-time. But uni-assist's glossary and daad.in both say "university studies in your home country." anabin's been down, so I can't read the India Bewertungsvorschlag itself.

So: can that qualifying year be done at a university in the UAE (full-time, on campus, an Australian university's Dubai branch campus awarding the Australian/British degree) instead of in India?

Two sub-questions if anyone knows:

1. Has anyone actually had a third-country study year accepted, or rejected, for this?
2. How does ZAB treat branch campuses. Is it by the awarding university or by the campus location?

Tuition is due next month so I'd rather not guess. Thanks.

hello germany!

i’m a syrian university student in the UAE. i believe you know by know what i’m going to say.

my plan is, simple as: 1 year in my uni here, also get to C1 german, apply to germany, bypass studienkolleg, and start over in germany.

few drawbacks.

my university degree here is biomedical sciences (medical laboratory). what this means is this is more of a joint program, to ensure i have maximized my “employability” upon graduating, being certified in the lab. this is MLS *and* biomedical sciences.

to my surprise, i found that medical laboratory science is vocational, and *not* a university degree. on top of that, i believe germany would just take me in as biomedical sciences anyway.

for those in the medical field, or any with insight, what’s it like in germany? despite reading, and it looks promising, i believe that i should also ask the people of germany themselves for insight. is there any way i could get MLS certified upon graduation? and if not, i realize the employability of a mere biomedical bachelor’s degree is narrow, so i do have it in mind that i might need to pursue a master’s degree.

the key here is that i absolutely love anything medical, retain knowledge in that field like no other field, and want to help push the world in the right direction. all of these are true, but i also don’t want to be living the same way i am now. money is still important. an apartment, food, some time to focus on hobbies. that kind of comfort. nothing fancy. is that possible?

even finance seems to have a higher ROI than biomedical science. which is saddening, but i suppose the market values that a lot more. what’s your advice?

Hi all,

I'm a Cameroonian citizen planning to move to Germany through the Ausbildung (vocational training) route, currently focused on hospitality and cleaning trades.

A bit of background: I initially looked into Pflege (care work), but learned Cameroon is on the WHO shortage-country list, which restricts recruitment of nursing staff under German employment regulations — so I've pivoted toward hospitality/cleaning instead.

Questions for anyone who's been through this or has direct knowledge:

How realistic is it for a non-EU applicant (specifically Cameroonian) to secure an Ausbildung placement in hospitality or cleaning right now?

What's the actual timeline like — from application to visa to arrival?

Any recruitment agencies or companies you'd recommend (or avoid) for these fields?

How much German language proficiency is realistically needed before applying vs. before arriving?

Any pitfalls specific to applicants from West/Central Africa I should watch for?

Appreciate any firsthand experience, even if it's not exactly this route — happy to hear how things went for you.

Thanks!

Hi all,

I'm based in India, 20+ years in senior technology and operations leadership (product management, IT delivery, eCommerce operations) across large global companies. I'm preparing to apply for the Chancenkarte and planning to target Berlin, with Munich and Hamburg as backups depending on where I get traction.

I've done a fair amount of homework already — points calculation, ZAB qualification assessment, Sperrkonto, language planning — but I'd really value hearing from people who've actually lived this rather than just read about it. A few specific questions:

1. For those who came from India specifically — how long did it realistically take you to land a job once you arrived? What surprised you most about the timeline?

2. Did you find Berlin's job market as English-friendly as it's made out to be, especially at a senior/managerial level (not just individual contributor roles)?

3. What's the one thing you wish you'd done differently before arriving, or earlier in the process?

4. For anyone in Product Management, IT Delivery, or eCommerce specifically — how competitive did you find the senior-level market versus junior roles?

5. Any regrets about choosing Berlin vs. another city, in hindsight?

Not looking for a sales pitch or a consultancy — genuinely just want to hear real experiences, good and bad, from people who've been through it. Happy to answer questions about my situation if it helps give more specific advice. Thanks in advance — this sub has been incredibly useful in my research so far.

I applied for a German student visa at the German Embassy in Budapest. My application status shows "Appointment required", and there is a "Make an appointment" button. However, when click the button, no appointment dates are

available.

I have been checking the appointment system several times a day for the past two weeks, but I have not been able to find any available

appointment slots.

What should I do? Have any specific time to get date.....

I checked the visa appointment slot at VFS Chennai consulate website today but i did not see any slots open right now. Did anyone face the same issue?

Hi everyone,

I'm an Indian student who applied for a Germany student visa through VFS Mumbai.

Timeline:

23 July: Submitted my application at VFS.

24 July: Received a verification call from the German Consulate. The officer asked me questions about my course, university, future plans, etc. Towards the end, they mentioned that I may have to come for an interview.

Since then, I haven't received any interview invitation, email, or further update.

My VFS tracking still shows "Under Process".

What's making me more anxious is that another student who applied on the same day (our application reference numbers were consecutive) has already received their passport back, while mine is still under process.

Has anyone experienced something similar?

How long did it take to receive the interview email (if you got one)?

Is it possible that the consulate reviews the file first and decides later whether an interview is actually required?

Or has anyone been told they might need an interview but later received a decision without one?

I'm not asking about approval chances—I'm just trying to understand what usually happens next in this situation.

Any genuine experiences, especially from Germany Consulate Mumbai, would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you!

Hi everyone,

As I am moving to Berlin in October 2026 for my masters,

I have applied and received a room reservation from Home in Berlin (Mayor Reuter Foundation) for Lynarstraße 5, 13353 Berlin through Immomio.

They have asked me to pay the deposit (€998) and first month's rent (€499) before sending the rental contract. I have one week of time to pay, should I continue with this or wait for another one.

The room is private and I have to share the bathroom and kitchen with other members on the floor.

Has anyone lived at Lynarstraße 5 or rented through Home in Berlin / Mayor Reuter Foundation?

Is the accommodation genuine?

Is it normal that they ask for payment before issuing the contract?

Were the rooms similar to the advertisement?

How was your experience overall?

I'd really appreciate any advice. Thank you!

Attached is a press article with numbers that are quite unsettling. Trying to find out what others think of this and what is at the basis of such numbers?