FAQs Staying abroad
The content on this page was translated automatically.
Dear psychology students interested in studying abroad,
below you will find a list of frequently asked questions about studying abroad and the corresponding answers. Perhaps these can help you in your search for a suitable stay abroad! If you have any further questions, would like to know something in more detail or would like to talk about it personally, please contact Ms. Susana Condado (Erasmus Counselling).
This FAQ was created by tutors for stays abroad and is aimed at psychology students at the University of Kassel. Therefore, the "Du" was used as a form of address. All information is as of April 2021.
Possibilities and general information
There are many ways to go abroad:
Firstly, you can spend one (or even two) semesters studying at a university abroad. This works via the Erasmus program, for example, where you can go to one of the partner universities of the Institute of Psychology and do not have to pay any tuition fees. You can also apply to a university of your choice as a "freemover".
Another option is to do your compulsory internship or another voluntary internship abroad .
Other options include summer schools (shorter courses abroad), study trips (usually excursions as part of a seminar) or language courses abroad. You can also plan your stay abroad as part of a doctorate or write your thesis abroad.
The University of Kassel offers a short test to help you find the right stay abroad:
Yes, in addition to the European partner universities in the Erasmus program, there are programs in Hessen, for example, which allow you to study in the USA or Australia for a semester free of tuition fees. There are also scholarships for study visits to the USA via the Fulbright Commission. As a free mover, you can go virtually anywhere if you find a suitable university, and the same applies to internships. Some summer schools also take place in non-European countries and a language course can of course also take place anywhere where the desired language is spoken and where there are opportunities.
You can find more detailed information on the institute and university websites.
As a general rule, a stay abroad is possible from the third Bachelor's semester onwards. For the Master's degree, it is recommended to plan it after two semesters. However, it is also possible to look individually at what time is best for you personally.
Yes, you can, but it requires a bit more organization than writing it on site. It would be possible to write the thesis as part of an Erasmus stay abroad, at a company, or even self-organized. A thesis abroad must then also be discussed with the examination office and the respective module supervisor.
Application process
As a rule, you should start making arrangements for your stay early so that you have enough time to take care of language courses, accommodation, financial support, etc. There is no specific application deadline at the Institute of Psychology. For an Erasmus stay, it is best to express your interest in a place at your chosen university to Ms. Condado as early as possible, as the rule here is "first come, first served". You should also enquire about any application deadlines at the host university in question.
Erasmus
Start preparing as early as possible (one year in advance). First find out more on the websites of the institute, the university or the International Office and also on the websites of the universities abroad that interest you.
Important questions include: Which university do I want to go to? What courses are on offer there and can I have the courses recognized here? Are there any language requirements? Can I attend a language course? What is the housing situation like?
Of course, you can also get information in person from ado, who is responsible for Erasmus advising, from the tutor for stays abroad and from the International Office. During the personal interview with Ms. Condado, you will receive further information, including whether a stay at the desired university at the desired time is possible. Once this has been clarified, you can complete the online application via the International Office.
Then bring this online application in printed form, as well as other documents (current passport photo and certificate of enrolment) to the next interview with Ms. Condado.
You will then be nominated by the University of Kassel and will receive a message and further information when the host university has accepted you.
Internships
You can do the compulsory internship or a voluntary internship abroad. If you would like to have your internship recognized, you should contact the module coordinator.
It is important for a compulsory internship abroad that it meets the requirements listed on the above-mentioned page. The supervision should be provided by a person with a degree in psychology, it should be in a relevant psychological field of activity and, of course, work should be carried out according to current psychological concepts (depending on the country, this may have to be checked). This information is important in order to apply for the internship and have it recognized.
To apply, you can look for places on various internship exchanges, look independently on job exchanges in the respective country or ask directly whether an internship is possible. You can find more information under the question "How do I find an internship?". In addition to the internship itself, you can also look for funding through various programs such as Erasmus, PROMOS, SHOSTA and other scholarships, e.g. from the DAAD.
Here are two checklists from the DAAD that may be helpful as a guide for the application process and preparations:
For studying abroad
For the internship abroad
Erasmus program
You can find a current list of the cooperations of the Institute of Psychology and the places available there here
Yes, you can also go to another university as a "freemover". However, you will not automatically receive the Erasmus Mobility Grant, but will have to arrange your own funding (e.g. a scholarship) and contact the university. You may also have to pay tuition fees, which are waived for Erasmus places. A study place can be financed e.g. via an intermediary organization, self-financed, as a guest student or via BAföG abroad.
Of course! The Institute, Prof. Reinhard and Ms. Condado are always open to new opportunities for cooperation. So it's great if you have ideas and have possibly already contacted universities. You can then contact Mr. Reinhard and we will see if both universities are interested in an exchange. Unfortunately, it takes a while to conclude a cooperation, so that doesn't necessarily mean that you can go to your preferred university straight away, but future Erasmus students will also be pleased.
Unfortunately, this is not possible within the framework of Erasmus cooperation, as the partner agreements are always concluded for specific places. So if there are only Bachelor's places at the university, but you are in the Master's program, you would either have to ask whether an extension of the agreement is possible, or you could go to the university as a freemover.
The Erasmus funding rate depends on which country you are going to. Here you can find the current funding rates by country:
This page lists all cooperations of the University of Kassel and you can search for cooperations of specific departments and countries. Please note: The cooperations of the Institute of Psychology are of course primarily accessible to us, but this page also provides a good overview. In principle, it is possible to go to host universities via other departments, but then all parties who have signed the agreement must agree and the "own" students of the respective department naturally have priority!
Internships abroad
In principle, you can do internships in any country, so the search options are diverse, which is great, but can be a bit overwhelming. Here are some tips on where to start your search:
Various internship agencies are linked on this page: https://www.daad.de/de/im-ausland-studieren-forschen-lehren/praktika-im-ausland/praktikumsvermittlung/
You can find the Erasmus internship exchange here: erasmusintern.org
This page is specifically for research internships abroad: https://www.daad.de/rise/en/rise-worldwide/
If you are interested in business psychology: https://www.aiesec.de/praktika
For internships in France, there are also scholarships available here: https://www.dfjw.org/junge-erwachsene/einen-job-eine-arbeit-oder-ein-praktikum-finden.html
And finally, an overview with further pages from the University of Kassel: https://www.uni-kassel.de/uni/index.php?eID=dumpFile&t=f&f=6574&token=bbd054ee961ea2f66709607c8d03ec8798eb6b2b
Otherwise, you can also go to job portals in the country of your choice and search for internships there.
The module coordinators for internships at the institute are the right contacts for this.
It is important that you can explain exactly which organization you are doing your internship with, who will supervise you (it must be someone with a degree in psychology) and also which activities you will be able to do there. This information is relevant for the application for the internship and also for later recognition. Further information can be found on the page above or from the respective supervisor.
Course enrollment and recognition
If you would like to have a course recognized, you should discuss this with the respective module coordinator at the Institute of Psychology before your stay (e.g. Prof. Ralf Rummer would be responsible for approving a course to be recognized in General Psychology). You then submit to him or her, for example, a summary of the content of the course abroad and then the person responsible decides whether this course can be recognized or not.
All the courses you attend are recorded in the Learning Agreement. This can also be adapted during your stay and is then submitted to the examination office of the institute together with the transcript of records and the courses are recognized.
For a semester abroad with Erasmus funding, the question often arises as to whether courses from other subjects can also be taken, or how many courses must be psychology courses. If possible, two or at least one psychology course should be taken (the more the better, as it is also interesting to get to know familiar content in a different language and from a different perspective). However, the rest can also be taken outside the subject if, for example, the English-language psychology courses on offer are not sufficient. However, this also depends on the host university and whether it allows courses to be taken outside the subject. Some universities require a second learning agreement to be concluded.
This is also important: You cannot take Master's psychology courses during your Bachelor's degree! The other way around is permitted, but you cannot take a "higher" course.
The courses you would like to attend abroad are defined in a Learning Agreement, which is signed by representatives of the home and host universities. A minimum number of 24 ECTS is specified for this.
If you want to have credits recognized, you must not take a semester off, as these cannot be credited. If you do not wish to have any credits recognized and consider a semester off to be useful, you can discuss this with the Examinations Office of the Institute of Psychology.
Language skills
This depends on the language requirements of the university, but of course also on the language of instruction. You should bear in mind that university courses in the local language are of course even more demanding than normal everyday communication. It is always a good idea to take a language course before or on site to refresh your language skills (this also increases your anticipation and creates new contacts).
There is no central regulation for this, each university decides for itself whether certain language skills and certificates are required for a semester abroad. You can check the website of the university of interest, but this can be a little confusing. The language of instruction and language requirements are also set out in the bilateral agreement between the Institute of Psychology and the host university. You can ask Ms. Condado for this information.
There are free language courses for students at the University of Kassel; if the language you need is available there, it is often practical to take a course beforehand. However, you can usually also take language courses in your host country, but these are not necessarily free of charge.
Here is the link to the Language Center of the University of Kassel:
Financing and organizational matters
A stay abroad can be financed through various programs, e.g. the Erasmus program (for study stays at partner universities and internships in Europe), as well as programs such as PROMOS, SHOSTA, DAAD scholarships, etc.
Further information on scholarships and funding opportunities can be found here:
and here
It isimportant to know that, with the exception of the Erasmus program, a separate application process is required for the study/internship place and the financial support!
The Auslands-BAföG is independent of whether you receive grants at home or not! So it's definitely worth trying it out if you need further financial support abroad.
Some universities organize or arrange halls of residence, but you often have to search for them yourself. In this case, it is best to start early and search through all possible online portals. There is often helpful information on the host university's website or in testimonials from students who have been there before.
In most European countries, with the "EHIC" European Health Insurance Card (on the back of your health insurance card if you are not privately insured), you have the same rights as a resident insured person. In the case of medically necessary treatment, you will be treated in the same way as here (i.e. no screenings or check-ups). You can often find out exactly what the situation is like in your host country on the university's website. The safest thing to do is to take out additional travel insurance for the country in question.
As you have to start planning your stay very early on, something unforeseen can of course always come up. Of course, no one will force you to go on a stay abroad that you no longer want, but it is very important that you inform all responsible parties as early as possible in such a case, as otherwise it can have negative consequences for other applicants and also for the university cooperation or your internship company.
Other/further contact points
Yes, there is a Moodle course where you can find lots of testimonials from fellow students, which are linked here:
Some students agree that you can contact them if you have any questions, this will be noted there.
You can contact the Erasmus officer Prof. Mirjam Ebersbach or the person responsible for the respective degree program, for the Bachelor's and Master's in Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy via the email address studieren.psychologie@uni-kassel.de, for the Master's in Psychology Ms. Priscilla Achaa-Amankwaa (MScPsych@uni-kassel.de) and for the Master's in Business, Psychology and Management this is Ms. Juliane Friedrichs.
However, this does not deal with questions regarding the recognition of courses; the respective module coordinator is always responsible for this.
An important information point for stays abroad is the International Office of the University of Kassel. You can get advice here during office hours or by phone/email. There is also a newsletter and the International Office is also represented on Facebook and Instagram, so that you can always stay up to date and know about interesting offers and information events.
Click here for the International Office website:
www.uni-kassel.de/uni/international/kontakt-und-service/international-office
There is also the University of Kassel's student finance advice service specifically on the subject of scholarships and student finance:
www.uni-kassel.de/uni/studium/nach-der-bewerbung/studienfinanzierung