Medicine & Health Sciences Courses at Heidelberg University - Germany

The Heidelberg University – Germany offers various preparatory courses related to Medicine & Health Sciences courses for international students. Many of the Medical and biological degree programs at Heidelberg University only begin in the winter semester.  

One of the preparatory courses offered during the preparatory semester is BioMed College. The students need to meet certain requirements to apply for the preparatory semester for medical and biological degree programs such as: 

• Direct university entrance qualification 

• DSH certificate with at least DSH-2 level or an equivalent certificate 

International students must have a student visa to study at Heidelberg University – Germany. Either a valid visa or a valid residence permit is required for all the students outside the EU and the EEA for their studies at Heidelberg University. 

After arrival, students must apply for an extension of their stay in the form of a residence permit at the local Foreigners' Registration Office approx. 8 weeks before the visa expires. 

Tourist visa, visa according to the Schengen Agreement and business visas cannot be extended or changed into a study visa by the local Foreigners' registration office in Germany. 

The Medicine & Health Sciences Courses at Heidelberg University – Germany has some of the key partnerships or collaborations such as: 

• National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT) Heidelberg 2004. Founded as a joint institution of the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) and Heidelberg University Hospital (UKHD). 

• Oncology Center of Excellence designated as an Oncology Center of Excellence by the German Cancer Aid. 

• Health + Life Science Alliance Heidelberg Mannheim 

• University Medical Centre Mannheim- UMM 

• European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) 

• Max-Planck-Institute (MPI) for Medical Research 

For admissions in Heidelberg University, international students are required to apply via hochschulstart.de. There are 3 admissions quotas which must be met by students seeking acceptance to a degree programme in Human Medicine or Dentistry: 

• 30% of the students' study places are awarded solely based on the school-leaving grades. 

• The Additional Suitability Quota (ZEQ) is 10% which is independent of school grades and includes Results of the Test for Medical Studies (TMS), Completed professional training/experience in healthcare, etc. 

• 60% is the university selection procedure (AdH) 

The international students need to make sure they gather all the necessary documents required by Heidelberg University. The necessary documents are different for undergraduate Medicine & Health Sciences Courses and postgraduate Medicine & Health Sciences Courses. 

Some of the needful documents are mentioned below: 

• Academic Transcripts 

• Proof of German Language Proficiency

• Visa and Residence Permit 

Some of the requirements are course specific for international students such as: 

• MSc in Health Services Research and Implementation Science in Health Systems (In German & English) - Bachelor's degree in health science or related fields, basic knowledge of social research methods (min. 6 ECTS). 

• MSc in Medical Education (In German & English)- Bachelor's degree in health-related professional degree at a domestic or foreign university for at least 4 academic years. 

For admission to Medicine & Health Sciences Courses at Heidelberg University, students need to submit certain required language certificates while filling in the application form.  

The most essential and basic language requirement at Heidelberg University – Germany is DSH-2 (C1 level), or equivalent language certificate required for Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmacy courses. DSH-2 (C1 level), or equivalent is also considered basic requirement for Health Sciences related courses such as BSc in Interprofessional Health Care, BSc in Sport Science, MSc in International Health, etc. 

Heidelberg has various student accommodation, from single flats with their own bathroom and kitchen to shared flats of various sizes. The Heidelberg University – Germany has a total of 30 residential student halls in Heidelberg. International students can stay at these residential halls as they are operated by the university.  

Some details of these residential halls at Heidelberg are mentioned below: 

Service Package is operated by Heidelberg University for international students. This service is wholly devoted to students who have no or little knowledge of German language or have never lived in Germany.  

Students from German-speaking countries or short-term or program students are given less priority for this service package. This service package includes: 

• Student halls room for one semester (= 6 months) 

• Personal advisor 

• Campus Card topped up with €95 (INR 9.7K) 

• Service Package is € 2.800 (INR 2.85L) (plus a € 650 (INR 66.0K) deposit for the dormitory room) for one semester (= 6 months)