Studying at ASH Berlin

Studying at ASH Berlin means studying at an interdisciplinary, research-intensive yet practice-oriented educational institution which offers a diverse range of professional and further-education perspectives for careers in social work, health and early education. ASH Berlin offers the following undergraduate Bachelor programmes:

• Social Work
• Early Childhood Education
• Physiotherapy / Occupational Therapy
• Health Care and Nursing Management (until 2020: Health and Care Management)
• Nursing (study programme information only in German)
• Interprofessional Health Care online (study programme information only in German) 
• BASA Social Work online

Our Master programmes consist of the four consecutive programmes Practical Research in Social Work and Early Education (M.A.), Social Work - Critical Diversity and Community Studies (M.A.), Management and Quality Development in the Health Sector (M.Sc.) as well as Public Health (M.Sc.) and a number of non-consecutive further education Master programmes (which are not open to exchange students).

Exchange students will be nominated by their home university for a specific study programme (e.g. Social Work), provided an exchange agreements exists between your home university and ASH Berlin.

The majority of courses at ASH Berlin is taught in German. English courses (for exchange students) are only available in the Social Work programme within the so-called "International Curriculum". Advanced German and/or English language skills are thus a requirement for a successful stay in Berlin and at ASH Berlin.

The so-called "International Curriculum" in the Social Work programme offers English, and at times also Spanish courses. The exact English (and Spanish) courses may be subject to change every semester, but we guarantee that courses worth at least 30 ECTS will be offered every semester. Usually, the International Curriculum consists of approx. 10-15 courses (e.g. "International Social Work", "Racism and Migration" or "Social Work Practice Methods"). You can access the International Curriculum course lists and descriptions of the current and past semesters below. The exact course details will be published 2-3 weeks before the start of the semester via the LSF portal.

ASH Berlin uses the ECTS system to describe and define the course workload. One ECTS credit equals 25-30 hours of work.

A study programme at ASH consists of different modules. A module comprises several course units of related content. In the bachelor programme Social Work for example, the module “Diversity Studies” consists of two units: Unit 1 “Racism and Migration” and Unit 2 “Gender and Queer Studies”.

You can find the contents of the courses and modules in the module handbooks of each study programme.

The Learning Agreement is an essential part of your application and serves to put together a list of courses which you would like to attend during your stay. In order to find out about the courses offered in English in the past, please refer to the course lists of the English-taught courses in our International Curriculum of the current and past semesters (see above). For more information about the courses, please also check the course and ECTS manual for exchange students which you'll receive with our first e-mail to you about the application process. For the contents of courses and modules, you should consult the module handbooks (see above).

The courses you mention on the Learning Agreement will usually be your binding course choice. If necessary (e.g. in case of a time clash or if a course is not offered during your exchange semester), we can change your Learning Agreement and your course choice again together in the beginning of the semester.

As explained above, the courses you mention on the Learning Agreement will usually be your binding course choice. At the time when you have to prepare your Learning Agreement, the exact course times and details haven't been published yet. Therefore, you may be required to change your course choice again after the start of the semester (e.g. in case of a time clash or if a course is not offered anymore). Depending on your study programme, you have two weeks time before or after the start of the semester to put together your final course plan and to sign up for your courses electronically.

The exact course times and details will be published in the course catalogue ("Vorlesungsverzeichnis") 3-4 weeks before the start of the semester via the LSF portal. Once you have put together your final course plan before or after the start of the semester, you also need to sign up for your courses electronically via the LSF portal (see below). Before the start of the semester (e.g. during the orientation days), we will explain the course registration procedure to you in detail, but you can also consult our step-by-step instructions for using the LSF portal. 

The deadlines for course planning, course registration and Learning Agreement changes differ - depending on your study programme:

If you are doing an exam in a course or in a module, you need to sign up for the exam online via LSF (depending in your study programme). Exam registrations via LSF will open approx. six weeks after the start of the semester – and will be available until the end of the semester. Depending in your study programme, you can sign up for all or most of your exams via LSF. If you're only attending a course, but you're not taking the exam, you do not need to sign up for the exam via LSF.

More information about exam registration

Studying at a German university is likely to differ from the academic system at your home university. As a student in Germany, and particularly at ASH Berlin, you will probably have more responsibilities to take care of on your own, but at the same time, you are often more independent and free in your choices. This concerns your choice of courses, but also the way students write essays and research papers. Past exchange students have often remarked upon the fact that seminars at ASH Berlin often involve or even require a very active and lively student discussion. Therefore we encourage you to take part in seminar discussions – this way you will get more out of your studies at ASH and it is also a great way to get to know your fellow students and practise your German skills.

The academic calendar of ASH Berlin is divided into two semesters: the winter term and the summer term. Each semester consists of a teaching period (including exams) and a non-teaching period (often called "semester break") which most students use to complete research essays or practical placements. It is mandatory for exchange students to attend the orientation and teaching period during their semester at ASH Berlin, afterwards they may leave Berlin.

Each semester usually also features a so-called block week (“Blockwoche”) (students of BA Social Work have two block weeks) which is mainly used for extracurricular activities, excursions or to make up for any cancelled seminars.

ASH Berlin continuously works on making studying here more accessible for students with disabilities and special needs. The International Office supports exchange students with disabilities in planning their stay and can help prospective exchange students get in touch with our university’s and the studierendenWERK’s resources.

As a certified family-friendly institution, ASH Berlin provides multiple options and facilities to support students who are caring for a child / children. You can find further information, support and links at "Family at ASH Berlin".

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ASH Berlin offers a variety of service and support facilities for students. On the 2nd floor, you will find the IT Centre (Computerzentrum) which features the computer lab in room 218 and 219 with scanners and printers as well as IT support and you can borrow laptops and further hardware. At the Media Workshop (Medienwerkstatt ) you can borrow various media equipment and cameras  to produce films and videos.

• You can find current events at ASH Berlin at Events.
   
• You can find support and counselling for women* and trans* students, the career service, psychological counselling and much more at Guidance and Support.
   
• You can find the library, the IT Centre/Computerzentrum, the language department, the Media Workshop/Medienwerkstatt and much more facilities for students at Service Departments . 
   
• The EmpA project "Empowerment, awareness and anti-racist institutional opening of ASH Berlin" aims to use an empowerment approach to improve the study conditions of international students, students with a refugee background and students of color*.
   
• You can find the ASH Berlin sports courses at Alice gesund or self-inscribe to their Moodle course.
   
• You can find the different workshops like the aesthetic practice workshop, our music room, the collection of theatre props and costumes and more at Workshops.
   
• Information about getting involved in university politics and much more is available at University life (Hochschulleben).
   
• At ASH Berlin and all over Berlin you can find  student cafeterias (called "Mensa") which are run by the studierendenWERK BERLIN and offer various warm and cold meals and drinks. You can buy food or drinks from the Mensa with your Campuscard, cash payments are not accepted.

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Psychological counseling is available in German and in English by the studierendenWERK BERLIN. The counselling is free of charge and confidential.

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If you wish to apply as a regular degree-seeking student, please contact the general student counselling or check the overview of our study programmes which include English- and Spanish-taught Master programmes.

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