From Germany abroad or vice versa
Those moving abroad or coming (back) to Germany from abroad will find helpful addresses and links here.
Many students or doctoral candidates would like to leave their home university for a limited period. The country is usually decided quickly. But which university? And where does the money come from to finance the stay abroad? The DAAD offers an extensive information portal for this purpose. Under “Information for Germans”, you will find, among other things, tips on planning your stay, scholarships and the recognition at your home university of achievements completed abroad. Country-specific information provides an overview for (almost) every country in the world of the programmes available for travelling there.
Foreign scientists also find useful information at the DAAD on doctoral and funding opportunities for a stay in Germany. And for German scientists living abroad, the DAAD offers return fellowships as well as practical information and tips to make returning easier. Most DAAD funding programmes support doctoral candidates, but the scholarship database also lists various programmes for students, postdocs and university lecturers. Information on the Erasmus+ programme, the successor to the European Commission’s Erasmus programme, can also be found here.
The DFG supports young scientists with its diverse programmes at every stage of their early scientific career, regardless of their level of qualification. Whether during or after their studies or doctoral training, the DFG offers suitable funding opportunities: from participation in DFG-funded projects during their studies and research fellowships to various funding programmes. In particular, the DFG promotes the recruitment of young talent from Germany and abroad for Germany as a centre of research. The DFG supports projects in all academic disciplines involving researchers in Germany and their colleagues from Germany or abroad. GERiT – German Research Institutions, operated in cooperation with the DAAD and the HRK, records more than 25,000 institutes at German higher education institutions and non-university research institutions according to geographical, academic and structural criteria. Gepris is the database in which all current and completed projects funded by the DFG are available for research.
Going abroad does not always have to be complicated. Universities often offer partnerships abroad. It is worth searching for partnerships on the university’s own website. The Higher Education Compass allows you to quickly find all German and foreign higher education institutions. Those interested in pursuing a doctorate can find an overview of doctoral opportunities in Germany in the “Doctorate” section. In the search form, you can filter by various criteria or search specifically for doctoral opportunities at a particular university.
Around 300 German higher education institutions are partnered with higher education institutions and other organisations abroad. Here you can search for all existing partnerships between a German and a foreign university.
The services of the German Scholars Organization e.V. are primarily aimed at German scientists living abroad who wish to continue their scientific career in Germany. It is an independent non-profit organisation that supports German scientists abroad and promotes their reconnection with Germany. To this end, the GSO offers free advice. Among other things, the GSO provides advice on preparing a CV and offers personal preparatory consultations. In addition to its own funding programmes, it also provides information on those offered by other organisations that provide financial support to returnees on their return home.
With the research fellowships offered by the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, you can either make the move abroad or return to Germany. Through its fellowships and foundation prizes, the Foundation supports self-selected research projects with a host, one of more than 26,000 former Humboldt alumni, both abroad and in Germany. It does not matter what career stage you have already reached. Whether you are just starting your scientific career or are already an established scientist, the Humboldt Foundation’s funding opportunities offer everyone the ideal option suited to their own career stage and situation.
Many questions and organisational matters have to be clarified for a stay abroad. To avoid getting completely lost in the flood of information, Euraxess Germany provides information and advice to researchers who are coming to Germany for a research project or travelling abroad. The website provides a wide range of information, including on funding opportunities, social insurance and tax issues, as well as topics relating to researcher mobility. Depending on whether you are travelling abroad, coming to Germany from abroad or returning after an extended stay abroad, you will find all relevant information and a funding database in the relevant category.
The Information and Documentation Centre for Studying in France (CIDU) in Berlin has compiled extensive information on studying in France. Anyone wishing to study there will find detailed information on studying, social insurance matters, the recognition of academic achievements and much more.
A German-French service centre was established through cooperation between the Franco-German University (DFH) and the Association Bernard Gregory (ABG). The aim of this cooperation is to promote relations and mobility between early-career scientists in France and Germany. The service centre is primarily aimed at doctoral candidates and postdoctoral researchers who wish to be mobile within the German-speaking and Francophone regions. It supports those interested with services relating to entering and pursuing a career and helps them navigate the labour market in both countries.
More and more students spend part of their studies abroad or complete their studies there and then seek to enter the German labour market. Young higher education graduates also come to us from other countries to pursue further studies or complete a doctorate. As a result, more and more foreign higher education qualifications are entering the German market, raising the question of which German qualifications are comparable to a higher education qualification obtained abroad. Anabin stores information on higher education qualifications from various countries. Interested parties can find out there how many years of study a qualification normally comprises, which German qualification is comparable to it and which organisations can help with the recognition of foreign qualifications.
This portal also provides information on whether and how a qualification obtained abroad is recognised, and brings together information on the legal basis and recognition procedures in the individual professions. The portal is based on the “Act to Improve the Assessment and Recognition of Professional Qualifications Acquired Abroad”, which came into force on 1 April 2012. This Act is intended to facilitate the recognition of foreign professional qualifications and promote the integration of qualified migrants and foreign skilled workers into the German labour market. The portal is aimed both at migrants already living in Germany who acquired a professional qualification abroad and at skilled workers abroad interested in working in Germany. It is operated by the Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research