Exchange at ESMT

General information

• Nomination

  To apply to study at ESMT, students must be nominated by our partner institution.

   

  Spring 2024 nomination deadline: 1 October 2023

• Application

  Nominated students will receive application instructions via the email address provided by their exchange coordinator.

  As part of their application, students will be asked to provide:

  • CV
  • Color scan of their passport (front and photo page)
  • Confirmation of English language proficiency

   

  Application deadline for Spring 2024: 15 October 2023

• English language proficiency requirements

  TOEFL scores (95 minimum), PTE score (64 minimum), IELTS  score (7 minimum) or other English proficiency test. ESMT Berlin accepts MyBest™ scores for the TOEFL iBT® test, in addition to TOEFL iBT scores from a single test date. The ESMT TOEFL institution code is 8707.

  Students whose native language is English or who have earned a university degree exclusively taught in English, do not need to take an English proficiency test.

• Term dates

  Autumn 23

  • 15 September 2023: Orientation & Welcome Day     
  • 18 September 2023: First course starts          
  • 05 December 2023: Last MBA course in 2023 ends (incl. exam)        
  • 15 December 2023: Last Masters course in 2023 ends (incl. exam)   
  • Early January 2024: Further Masters courses available      

  Spring 2024

  Social Impact Project individual preparation (online: group forming and topic selection) starts from November 2023.

  • 02 January 2024: Orientation & Welcome Day
  • 03 January 2024: First course starts
  • 01-02 February 2024: Career Fair (no classes)
  • 08 March 2024: International Women's Day - public holiday (no classes)
  • 22 March 2024: End of taught courses, inc. any exams 
     
  • April - May 2024: Social Impact Project delivery (SIP)
  • April - July 2024: Summer Entrepreneurship Program delivery (SEP)

  Students who require more than approx. 24 ECTS are expected to take SIP or SEP.

   

• Course selection: Masters courses

  Students coming on an exchange to our Master program can take selected courses from the first and second year of the Masters programs. 

  In 23/24, the available courses include 2nd year courses from the Master in Management program, as well as the 1st year courses from the three specialized Master programs (Master in Global Management, Master in Innovation and Entrepreneurship, and Master in Analytics and Artificial Intelligence).

  Course selection process:

  Due to potential course cancellations because of under subscription, schedule clashes, and limitations of room sizes because of over subscription, we require that students provide valid alternatives to their course choices.

  If specific courses are required by the sending institution, student should indicate those during the application process. Accommodations will be made wherever possible.

  Spring 2024 Information

  The preliminary list of courses is now available, you can view it in this PDF document.

  Note: Students who need to obtain more than 24 ECTS will be required to take Social Impact Project (6 ECTS) or, alternatively, Summer Entrepreneurship Program (15 ECTS).

  Course selection process will take place shortly after the application deadline of 15 October 2023. Nominated students will be invited to select their courses by submitting a course selection form.

   

  Welcome to your ESMT exchange - online seminar

  Thursday 05 October 2023 at 5pm on Zoom

  Nominated students will be invited to a preparatory seminar "Welcome to your ESMT exchange". We will cover the following topics:

  • Introduction to ESMT
  • Application
  • Course selection
  • Enrollment, visas and health insurance
  • Social Impact Project and Summer Entrepreneurship Program

  Invitation will be sent via email to nominated students.

• Course selection: MBA courses

  Below are examples of the electives offered to the incoming MBA exchange students. The final list will be confirmed at the application stage.

  • Design Thinking, 2 ECTS
  • Quantitative Methods in Marketing, 2 ECTS
  • Entrepreneurial Strategy, 2 ECTS
  • Global Strategies of Industrial Champions, 2 ECTS
  • Interactive Leadership / Leading Diversity, 2 ECTS
  • GNAM: Sustainable Finance, 2 ECTS
  • Sustainable Energy Future, 2 ECTS
  • Social Side of Business, 2 ECTS
  • Global Economy and Politics, 2 ECTS
  • Business German (prior knowledge of German required), 2 ECTS
  • Start Up Challenge, 4 ECTS

   

• Grading

  

   

   

• Accommodation

  ESMT is based in the very heart of Berlin and does not offer dedicated student accommodation on campus. ESMT’s Student Services will provide you with information on how to find housing in Germany. A wide variety of accommodation is available in Berlin for your needs. Typically, our students are able to find an apartment in Berlin before, or during the first weeks, of their exchange. For more information on how to find accommodation, see our Student Guide Book or contact Student Services via student-services@esmt.org.

• Cost of living

  This is a personal question, and it depends on your expectations for accommodation desires and food needs. On average, we find that students need €1,000 to €1,500 per month to live in Berlin. Students opting for a room in a shared flat may have expenses below this estimate.

  

   

  Students with disabilities who are looking for more information about accessibility and accommodation in Germany can visit this website.

• Clubs and organizations

  Exchange students can join clubs and organizations at ESMT and get involved in the ESMT community outside the classroom. Learn more about the active clubs on our dedicated webpage.

• Getting enrolled at ESMT

  During their first week on ESMT campus, incoming exchange students must obtain their enrollment confirmation from the Student Services Office (Room 232 A), or a digital version of it, via email. Here is what we require from students, in advance:

  • A signed and dated study agreement: Exchange students will receive their ESMT study agreements digitally in the weeks before program start. Please read the document carefully and keep a copy for your records. You can submit your signed and dated agreement via email.
  • Proof of valid health insurance: All students are required to submit a confirmation of their health insurance status issued by a German public health insurance company. Please read on for more information on health insurance as a student in Germany.

• Student health insurance in Germany

  Under German law, all students are obliged to have health insurance in order to study at a university. To become officially enrolled at ESMT, students must submit a document, issued by a German public health insurance provider, that confirms their insurance status. The confirmation must state that the student is either insured by a public health insurance provider or exempt from public health insurance obligation.

  In the latter cases, the student must additionally submit proof of the corresponding private health insurance or European Health Insurance Card. These documents should be submitted to the Student Services Office (student-services@esmt.org) within the first two weeks after the program start.

  Students from EU countries and countries with a social security agreement with Germany

  Students from several countries can take out medical insurance in their country of origin and get a European Health Insurance Card or its equivalent (e.g., EHIC, Citizens Rights EHIC, or A / T 11) before arriving in Germany. If you ask for the European Health Insurance Card, your local authority is obliged to provide you with one or, failing that, with a provisional replacement certificate if the card is not immediately available. These documents provide sufficient coverage for studying in Germany. This applies to the following countries:

  • EU Countries (Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxemburg, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden)
  • The UK, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland
  • Bosnia-Herzegovina, Israel, Macedonia, Morocco, Montenegro, Serbia, Tunisia, and Turkey

  If you have an EHIC or equivalent, you can show it to a German public health insurance provider, who will provide you with a health insurance obligations exemption letter. Further information on the EHIC may be found here and here.

  Note: To work in Germany, holders of the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) may need to switch to a German insurance provider. Confirm the requirements with your current insurer and your new employer before you start working.

  Students from non-EU and “nonsocial security agreement with Germany” countries

  These students must prove that they have sufficient insurance not only to enroll at ESMT but also to get a residence permit, if they need one. The travel insurance that many students get in order to apply for a German entry visa is not sufficient for enrolling at ESMT or applying for a residence permit.

  We strongly recommend that all students from non-EU countries and “non-social agreement with Germany" countries get travel insurance for the visa application and to cover them for the first weeks in Germany and obtain German health insurance after arrival.

  German private health insurance

  Unless you have a pre-existing medical condition, we recommend that you take out German private insurance to cover you during your exchange at ESMT. Private student insurance is cheaper than public student insurance, and the sign-up process is much simpler. However, unlike with public insurance, privately insured individuals must pay their medical costs upfront and request reimbursement.

  Please note also that German private insurance providers often limit their coverage of medical expenses related to pre-existing medical conditions. For this reason, individuals with pre-existing conditions should consider taking out German public health insurance.

  Note also that students over the age of 30 no longer qualify for German public health insurance and, in most cases, must take out private insurance.

  ESMT has had a partnership with Mawista, a German private student health insurance provider. On their ESMT landing page, you can get an overview of the costs of various private and public insurance plans and sign up for Mawista if you choose to. We have had overwhelmingly positive feedback about Mawista from students in the past. Other private insurance providers that students often opt for are Care Concept and Educare.

  If you opt for private health insurance, you need to submit to the ESMT Student Services Office the insurance confirmation from your private insurance provider as well as an exemption letter from a German public health insurance provider.

  German public health insurance

  German public student health insurance plans are more expensive than private insurance plans, and the sign-up process is more complicated. For this reason, exchange students who plan to stay in Germany for just a few weeks or months are generally better served taking out private student insurance.

  There are, however, a couple of advantages to having public insurance. Firstly, publicly insured individuals do not need to pay their medical costs upfront. Instead, the insurance provider pays these to the healthcare provider directly. The other advantage is that public insurance plans cover pre-existing medical conditions.

  ESMT works most closely with Techniker Krankenkasse, one of the biggest public insurance providers in Germany, as we have found their English-language customer service to be better than their competitors. That said, public insurance providers generally provide similar benefits for similar prices, so feel free to shop around.

  If you opt for public insurance, you will need to submit your health insurance confirmation to the Student Services Office at ESMT to complete your enrollment.

  If you have any questions/concerns about health insurance in Germany, please do not hesitate to reach out to ESMT’s Student Services Office at student-services@esmt.org.