German Language Skills and Courses
In the following table you can see which level is required to apply for your field of study.
Course | German proficiency |
| Bachelor, Teaching Degree, Law/ state examination | B2 (least good) |
Master's degrees | |
Law Postgraduate Studies LL.M. (European Law/ Economic Law; German Law for Postgraduate Jurists) | DSH2 / DSH3 or equivalent* |
Subjects with admission restrictions (undergraduate programmes): | DSH2 / DSH3 or equivalent* |
Doctorate/ PhD | Depending on Doctoral Rules |
Application for a higher semester | DSH2 / DSH3 or equivalent* recommended |
Please note:
- Please enclose a certificate of your German language skills with your application (the certificate should not be older than one year);
- Participation certificates will not be accepted as confirmation of language proficiency
To enrol in study programmes taught in German, you are required to prove the DSH examination (see below).
Exceptions:
- For some Master’s programmes you do not need a DSH examination (see list).
- Bachelor Musikpädagogik (Bachelor Science of Music Education): B2 for enrolment
The German requirements for our study programmes in English (application and enrolment) can be found on the list of all Master's degree programmes.
If you wish to obtain a degree in a German taught subject at the University of Würzburg, it is necessary to pass the DSH examination (German language examination for university entrance DSH2 or DSH3). This examination is offered at the Language Center of the University of Würzburg:
- Test Dates: Beginning of October for the Winter Semester and the beginning of April for the Summer Semester. The exact date will be listed on your letter of acceptance.
- The DSH examination consists of a written and an oral component. Testing examples can be found here.
If you want to take part in the DSH exam, you have to apply for a degree course at the University of Würzburg. Only after your application has been examined and you have been admitted, you are able to register for the language test (see also "Admission procedure").
Your admission to University studies depends on the level of German you hold when applying:
- When applying with German level DSH 2/ DSH 3 you will receive an admission letter for studies - provided we have a university place for you. This means that you can enrol for the degree programme directly without taking another language test.
- When applying with German level B2 - C1, you will receive an admission letter for studies, including an invitation to the DSH exam - provided we have a university place for you. You can attend the DSH exam at the University’s Language Centre (see also “DSH exam”).
Please note: You can only enrol for your studies after having passed DSH 2 or DSH 3.
- The Language Center of the University of Würzburg does not provide preparation courses for the DSH.
- To prepare yourself for the DSH examination you may attend chargeable language courses at private language schools. Language schools in Würzburg can be found on the website of the City of Würzburg.
- As soon as you have reached the B2 level in German you can apply for a degree programme. Afterwards you will get an admission letter with invitation to the DSH - provided that we have a university place for you (see also "Admission procedure")
Confirmation of the following documents are considered equivalent to a successfully-completed DSH and are sufficient for the enrollment in university courses:
- The Deutsche Sprachdiplom (Level II) from the Minister of Cultural Affairs (DSD II)
- The Zentrale Oberstufenprüfung (ZOP) of the Goethe Institute
- The Kleine deutsche Sprachdiplom of the Goethe Institute
- The Große deutsche Sprachdiplom of the Goethe Institute
- The Goethe-Zertifikat C2: Großes Deutsches Sprachdiplom (GDS) of the Goethe Institute
- TestDaF with level 4 x 4 TDN (=DSH2)
- The assessment test of a German preparatory college (Studienkolleg)
- telc Deutsch C1 Hochschule
The DSH-1 test is NOT equivalent to a DSH 2 or 3 and will NOT be accepted for enrolment to the university.
