[Unpad Media Channel] Universitas Padjadjaran received a visit from the Director of DAAD’s Regional Office in Jakarta, Dr. Guido Schnieders, on Friday, June 7. Dr. Schnieders visited Unpad to speak at an information session regarding the Deutcher Akademischer Austauchdienst, more commonly known as DAAD, held at the Japanese Language Study Center hall in Unpad’s Faculty of Cultural Sciences on the Jatinangor campus.
The session was opened with welcoming remarks from the Head of Unpad’s International Office, Ronny Lesmana, dr., M.Kes., AIFO, Ph.D. In his opening, Lesmana pointed out how the session could help broaden the knowledge of Unpad academics on options regarding studying in Germany.
“I believe this opportunity will widen our horizons, opening the windows of opportunity for all of us and enhancing the collaboration … and cooperation between both countries,” explained Lesmana.
Afterwards, Dr. Schnieders explained, in his talk, the advantages offered by Germany as a destination of study. One such advantage is the lack of tuition fees in most German universities, so a prospective student would only need to plan the most for living costs, trips, and insurance, all of which could be covered for by DAAD scholarships.
He also explained that Germany is experiencing a lack of skilled workers. Dr. Schnieders feels this lack could lead to opportunities for people from abroad to come and work in Germany.
“So, the German economy is actually booming, and would be booming even more if [there] would be more skilled workers,” added Dr. Schnieders.
Furthermore, Germany also offers varied options for the types of higher education institutions one can apply to. Among them is the fachhochschule, universities offering instruction in applied settings with close ties to the industry sector.
Dr. Schnieders continued by giving some insight into the technical and administrative side of choosing to continue one’s study in Germany. “Studying in Germany starts with finding study programs, and, good for you, we have databases … there are different websites but the databases are all the same,” he explained.
Those databases include websites such as www.myguide.de, which is promoted by DAAD, and www.studyingermany.de. Further information on the programs offered by DAAD themselves can be found on the website www.daad.de. (arm/ICP)*
