Study Health and Nursing Sciences in Germany

Before you decide on a course of study in the health and nursing sciences, you should consider the following questions: Do you want to deal with healthcare in general or more specifically with nursing? Do you want to manage healthcare and health services, or do you want to deal with their theoretical design?

If you are more interested in the economic/management aspects, the following fields of study may be most suitable for you:

• Health management
• Health economics
• Nursing management

In these subject areas, you will acquire business skills and knowledge of social law in addition to medical basics. This will allow you to take on a management position in a healthcare facility after completing your degree.

If, on the other hand, you would prefer to approach healthcare and nursing from a more scientific perspective, you should consider the following fields of study:

• Health pedagogy
• Health science
• Nursing pedagogy
• Nursing science
• Rehabilitation sciences

Here, too, you will learn the basics of medicine, but you will also cover subjects such as ethics and the social sciences. After graduating, you can work in healthcare facilities or in research, and you will deal primarily with the structures and processes of healthcare and care services.

The demand for qualified healthcare and nursing staff is high and will continue to rise due to demographic change.

To successfully study in the health and nursing sciences, you should have very good people skills. Qualities such as empathy and patience are important for a course of study that deals a lot with people (in need of care). But you should also have a good command of the English language: A lot of the academic literature is only available in English.

Since health and nursing sciences are applied fields of study, you can expect many practical units during your studies. Completely practice-integrated and part-time degree programmes are not uncommon. In general, Bachelor’s programmes are scheduled for six to eight semesters, and Master’s programmes for three to five semesters. Depending on the content and planned practical units, however, you will also find many degree programmes with shorter or longer standard study durations.

To be eligible to enrol in health and nursing sciences, you need a general or subject-specific higher education entrance qualification, a university of applied sciences entrance qualification or a comparable qualification. In some cases, completed vocational training plus work experience is also accepted as a substitute for a higher education entrance qualification. Please note, that there are also degree programmes that require relevant training and sometimes additional work experience in addition to the higher education entrance qualification.

Further admission restrictions can be a minimum grade point average (a numerus clausus, NC), pre-study internships, selection interviews, aptitude tests or other admission procedures. In addition, most higher education institutions expect you to provide proof of your health (e.g. in the form of a medical certificate) and a clean criminal record. In some cases, legally required vaccinations must also be proven.

But if you search for them, you can also find degree programmes that are completely free of admission requirements.

The costs of studying depend on many factors and are determined by tuition fees or semester contributions, rent and your personal budget and preferences, among other things.

Tuition fees: There are only rarely tuition fees to pay at public higher education institutions, so almost all degree programmes are free of charge. However, there are some exceptions in the field of health and nursing sciences and tuition fees may be charged at some public higher education institutions, especially for part-time courses. Tuition fees are actually always charged for courses offered by private higher education institutions.

In most cases, you will only have to pay semester contributions at public higher education institutions. Depending on the higher education institution, you can expect to pay between 100 and 400 euros per semester. Sometimes your semester contribution covers a ticket for local public transport or you can purchase a discounted ticket. Depending on where you study, this may be valid for the city, the region or even for all of Germany. Ask your higher education institution whether such an offer is currently available.

Tip: Since degree programmes in health and nursing sciences are not only available at public and private higher education institutions, but also at ecclesiastical institutions or as a dual programme, there are big differences in how much they can cost. It is best to enquire directly at your higher education institution if you are unsure about what you will be expected to pay.

Rent: Another financial burden for most students is rent. How much you will need to spend on accommodation can vary depending on the city. In large cities, housing is often scarce and expensive, while in smaller cities it is comparatively affordable. In any case, student halls of residence are usually your cheapest option. Not only do you get to know people quickly, but you also save money! As soon as you have decided on where you want to study, you should start looking, as halls of residence can fill up quickly. Here, you can find information on local halls of residence and the respective application process for most cities.

Living costs: Here, you should think about how much money you spend on food, clothing or drugstore items on average. Costs for smartphones and the internet, for example, or expenses for health insurance should also be taken into account.

To finance your studies in Germany, you should also find out about scholarships. There are many different scholarship programmes and excellent grades are not the only deciding factor. You can learn more about scholarships here and find suitable programmes directly on My GUIDE.

Depending on your degree programme and specialisation, you can choose from very different positions. For example, you can find a job in social and health management, health promotion and counselling as well as in nursing care or social counselling. Possible employers include hospitals, maternity homes, doctors‘ surgeries, nursing homes and rehabilitation clinics. However, health and long-term care insurance companies as well as the pharmaceutical industry or companies in the healthcare sector also offer jobs. Of course, you can also work in public administration, in associations or at agencies (e.g. in the Ministry of Health) or gain a foothold in research and teaching.

Many in the health and nursing sector are paid according to the public service pay scales. As a manager, e.g. of a care facility or in the pharmaceutical industry, you have even better salary opportunities. By the way, for managerial positions, an advanced degree, e.g. a Master’s degree, is often expected.