After being accepted to the BTS, you will certainly have many questions about studying and living in Berlin. We try to answer the most pressing ones here. And, of course, for more information contact the Office Coordinators.
We recommend that you make an appointment with the BTS coordinator soon after you have been accepted. The coordinator will be able to provide all necessary information on the programme and the registration procedure, including the final prove of eligibility and your enrolment. Also, the coordinator will support you in planning the next steps to join us in Berlin and get started at the BTS.
Proof of eligibility and enrolment is organised in a two level process. First, we need to check whether you have met all required conditions to start a PhD at the BTS. This is just to double check the documents you have submitted electronically during the application process. This explicitly includes the following documents:
- Application form
- Master certifcate in original version (if you have not acquired your master certificate yet, a letter from your university, approving that you have passed the final exam is enough. The master certificate will be handed in subsequently. The master must have been finished before 1 September)
- English certificate
The documents have to be brought to Daphne Stelter at the Postgraduate Admission Office (Prüfungsbüro) of the Department of Political and Social Science at the Freie Universität Berlin (FUB). If you are not able to hand in the documents personally, you can post certified version.
The BTS' Office Coordinators will sent the following documents:
- Your CV (taken form your application)
- Your research proposal (taken from your application)
- Letter of your supervisor supporting your application
After having handed in your documents at the Postgraduate Admission Office (Prüfungsbüro), the PhD Committee of the Department of Political and Social Science will check your Proposal for Admission. Within 3 to 5 weeks you will receive an offer letter from the Postgraduate Admission Office proving your eligibility to enrol as a PhD student at the Freie Universität Berlin (FUB).
Within the following 30 days you will have to attend the Office of Registrar to enrol as PhD Student of FUB. If the validity of the offer letter has expanded, you need to see the BTS coordinator.
For enrolment you need to bring in the following:
- Offer letter of the Postgraduate Admission Office
- Completed enrolment application
- Proof of health insurance for the university
- Original and photocopy of ID card or passport (including your visa)
- Withdrawal certificate from the last (German) university
- Original documents:
- MA certificate or equivalent (The MA has to be finished at the lastest before 1 September)
- Proof of English language skills (C1 level)
- About €250 (payable either in cash or by German cash card)
For further information please check out the enrolment application document (PDF 233KB).
Contact details of the Office of Registrar:
Office of Registrar
Iltisstr. 1
14195 Berlin
Tel: +49 30 838 700 00
Email: Info-Service@fu-berlin.de
From the Office of Registrar you will obtain your student ID (in various copies) providing you with the general accomplishments for students in Berlin (ticket for public transport, refectory card, accession to college sports, etc.).
To start the programme at the beginning of the academic year, we organise Information Days for all incoming students. During these days, we introduce the BTS institutions (FUB, HSoG, and WZB), organise guided library tours, and have fun get-togethers in the evenings. So, there will be plenty of time to socialise and learn more about the programme.
We also organise tutors from the advanced PhD years for the incoming students. They will be present at the information days and even available via email prior to the programme.
At the start of every academic year, the Dahlem Research School (DRS) offers so-called Orientation Weeks. In the morning, there will be language classes for German beginners, while in the afternoon, a varied programme of lectures on intercultural communication, German science culture, and excursions will take place.
In Germany, every student studying at a state-recognised institution of higher education is legally required to have health insurance. The statutory health insurance requirement is valid until the age of 30 or until completion of the 14th full semester of study.
As an international student under 30, you must acquire German health insurance unless you can provide the European Health Insurance Card, which students from EU/EEA countries can obtain. In emergency cases the European Health Insurance Card covers the required medical supply. This insurance card is, however, not enough to provide regular consultations. Therefore, we recommend for a long term stay of three years to register at a German health insurance.
To register at a German health insurance you have two different possibilities:
- a statutory health insurance and,
- a private health insurance.
The most popular statutory health insurances are (homepages are only available in German):
Having been member of a private health insurance in your country of origin, you only have the possibility to register at a private health insurance in Germany.
A comparison of benefits and a survey of private health insurances in Germany can be found here. (Only available in German)
For further information on the German health insurance system in English please attend here.
Some further information is delivered at the homepage of the Hertie School of Governance (HSoG)
We recommend that you learn German as a foreign language during your stay in Berlin. The Dahlem Research School (DRS) facilitates and coordinates the graduate schools at FUB and offers German language courses for beginners, intermediates, as well as avdanced learners. Their offers especially address international doctoral candidates. Registration for the courses is conducted by the BTS Office Coordinators. Please contact them if you are interested.
At the start of every academic year, the DRS offers German language courses during their so-called Orientation Weeks.
Besides, the Language Center (Sprachenzentrum) of the FUB offers German language courses for lower intermediates and andvanced learners. Moreover, there is the possibility of autonomous language learning at the Do-it-yourself-Center. Students interested in learning other languages may enrol for various language courses at the Language Center. For information about registration please contact the Language Center directly:
Sprachenzentrum der FU Berlin (ZE Sprachlabor)
Habelschwerdter Allee 45
14195 Berlin
Tel: +49 30 838 54504
Email: sprachenzentrum@fu-berlin.de
Language courses can be moroever at the other universities in Berlin on a basis of availability.
- Sprach- und Kulturbörse der TU Berlin (SKB)
- Technische Universität Berlin (TU)
- Humboldt Universität Berlin (HU)
Additionally, there are many private language schools offering a range of levels and courses.
The three BTS locations can stand for the wide variety of Berlin, a city with an extraordinary range of opportunities and attractions, many of them tailored to suit the tastes of the hundreds of thousands of students and academics who study and work at the numerous universities in Berlin.
At the homepage of the Hertie School of Governance you can find interesting information on the academic and cultural information of Berlin and its surroundings, as well as some very useful facts and links for accomodation, health care, public transport, etc.
For further information please click here.
BTS students can take advantage of all programmes offered at the athletic centres at Berlin's universities.
For contact and further information please visit the following homepages:
www.hs-sport.fu-berlin.de/
www.zeh.hu-berlin.de/
www.tu-sport.de
Further athletic activities such as football, running and basketball are offered at the Hertie School of Governance (HSoG).