Index
Does FAU offer any student clubs I could join?
Yes. You can find an overview of student groups and initiatives here. Moreover, ‘Volunteers for Internationals (VFI)’ ist a group for and organized by international students. You are welcome to join!
Is it possible to study German at FAU?
Yes, the FAU language center offers free German courses during the semester and intensive courses (with a fee) during the holidays. Please check the German department’s website for more information. You can use all language courses offered by our language center for the “Free Choice Uni” module (M8 from FPO 2018 onwards) if you wish to.
You can also take free German language courses and courses on German culture via the virtual learning platform VHB (www.vhb.org – please register with the study program “Gesundheitstechnik”). Please note, though, that you cannot use these course for your Master’s studies.
If you prefer learning German in an informal atmosphere and making new friends at the same time, you should consider registering for an online language exchange platform such as tandem.net or apply to be matched with a real-life tandem partner by our FAU tandem partner service.
What does “VHB” in the module catalog mean and how do I use VHB courses?
VHB stands for “Virtuelle Hochschule Bayern” (Virtual University of Bavaria), an online study platform that FAU students can use without any costs. Please click in the top right corner of the VHB page for the English version. You have to register once (please select “Gesundheitstechnik” as your study program/”Studienfach”) and get access to several online courses, some of which are available in English. Exams are mostly taken online, sometimes on-site examinations are offered at different universities in Bavaria. The use of VHB courses is mainly recommended for your personal gain, i.e. to learn German or to improve your skills in certain areas (e.g. C++ programming).
Please note: VHB-exams which are taken online at your home computer (without video supervision by an examiner) cannot be accredited for our Medical Engineering program!
If you take an on-site exam for a VHB course, you might be able to use it for your module group M8/Free Choice Uni. Please consult with your study advisore beforehand in this case.
How many ECTS points am I expected to obtain per term?
The regular recommended workload per semester is 30 ECTS points, as our master’s program consists of 120 ECTS points and the regular duration of studies is 4 semesters. You can find the recommended distribution of credits per term in the module catalog (see “Information for current students”). However, you don’t have to stick to the exact same study plan, you are free to make your own choices and take less or more modules/credits per semester.
From the university’s perspective, there is no minimum amount of credits that you have to acquire per semester and nobody will check on you how many courses you are taking. All master’s students have the guarantee that the general duration of studies will be extended to a 6th semester if they need it. The extension to the 6th semester can be achieved simply by re-registering for the respective semester by transferring the semester fee during re-registration week (i.e. first week of July or first week of February).
Please note two important aspects, however:
- If you need a 7th, 8th or even more semesters for your studies you have to file an application with our examinations office before the start of the respective semester and give justified reasons for it. In addition to that, you will also have to prove that you had a “regular” study progression so far, meaning that there is a realistic chance that you will be able to finish your studies soon.
- If you are in Germany on a study visa the immigration authorities will regularly ask you to submit a document issued by the university in which your regular study progression is confirmed. You can generate this document yourself in your Campo account – provided that you acquire on average at least 20 ECTS per semester. If you are unable to generate this document because you don’t fulfil said requirement, you have to contact our Student Records Office and give justified reasons why you cannot prove a regular study progression. It will then be evalutated whether you will receive the confirmation or not.
Conclusion: Although the university itself does not obligate you to obtain a certain amount of credits per semester, it is highly recommended – especially for Non-EU students – to acquire between 20 and 30 ECTS per term.
Especially during your first semester, when you are still getting used to your new university and study program, it can make sense to take rather 20 than 30 credits. If you feel you need a lot of time to study for some of your courses it can also be a good idea to accompany those courses with less time-consuming options, such as a softskills course for “M8/Free Choice Uni” or medical modules from module group M1.
Can I take more modules within a module group than required?
Yes, definitely, there is no ECTS credit limit for taking additional modules and/or additional exams. If you don’t communicate another preference at the end of your studies, our Examinations Office will automatically account the modules with the best grades for your master’s degree. The other modules and grades will only be listed in your Transcript of Records, but not in the Master’s certificate.
You may also use the modules you take additionally in other module groups, according to the rule for switching modules that is explained at the bottom of your module catalog – or in the module groups M7 (Felixible Budget Faculty of Engineering) and M8 (Free Choice Uni).
It is also ok if the modules you want to use to complete a certain module group exceed the ECTS requirement for the respective group. E.g. it is no problem if you use a 5 ECTS module and a 7,5 ECTS module to complete module group M7 (which only has an ECTS requirement of 10 ECTS). Please note, however, that in this case 2,5 ECTS of the module with the worse grade of the two will be lost. You cannot split up modules and use the remaining ECTS elsewhere.
Where do the courses of the Medical Engineering program take place?
Our Medical Engineering program is highly interdisciplinary, meaning that you will not only take classes at various departments at the Faculty of Engineering (Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Material Sciences, Chemical Engineering and Bioengineering and Artificial Intelligence in Biomedical Engineering), but also at the Faculties of Science and Medicine. This means that although you will mainly conduct your studies on the South Campus (“Südgelände” in the southern part of Erlangen), you might have to got to the Faculty of Medicine from time to time (located in the city center of Erlangen).
You can reach every location within 15 minutes by bike or bus.
I am having some trouble with the online application portal Campo. Where can I get help?
For more detailed information about the applying process, please click here. If you are facing technical problems please contact our campo support campo[at]fau.de.
When does the lecture period start?
The lecture period of the winter semester starts in the middle of October, the lecture period for the summer semester in the middle of April. The exact dates vary from term to term, you can find these and many other important semester dates on the Student Records Office´s website.
Do I have to pay tuition fees?
FAU does not charge tuition fees. You only have to pay an administrative fee of currently (winter 2024) 72 € per semester (i.e. twice a year).
Does FAU provide scholarships?
No. As we are a public university and don’t charge tuition fees, FAU does not dispose of a scholarship system. But you can apply for scholarships at other institutions, such as the German Academic Exchange service (DAAD). To gain a comprehensive overview about scholarship options in Germany, please click here.
In addition to the information above, we would like to draw your attention to these scholarship offers: