As of October 2, higher education in Germany is free. German and international students as well, can now study in Germany without having to worry about its high costs. On Wednesday, Lower Saxony eliminated tuition fees and became the last of the seven states of Germany to do so. Education in Germany had been quite accessible before as well. If we were to compare the cost of higher education in the United States and Germany, the differences would surprise anyone.
It wasn’t until 2006 that universities in Germany began charging for tuition. The decision was not received well by citizens, however soon enough the German states which had instituted the fees, began eliminating them one after another. Grabielle Heinen-Kjajic, the Minister for Science and Culture in Lower Saxony said the following in a statement: “We got rid of tuition fees because we do not want higher education which depends on the wealth of the parents”. Hamburg’s Senator for Science Dorothee Stapelfeldt declared the following: “Tuition fees are unjust! They discourage young people who do not have a traditional academic family background from taking up study. It is a core task of politics to ensure that young women and men can study with a high quality standard free of charge in Germany”.
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The concept of free education is strongly embraced throughout Europe, except in the UK. In the U.K. the government voted in 2010 for the increase in tuition fees for higher education. It had been reported, however that students were failing to pay for their tuition. This meant that the measure actually cost more money than it brought in. Compared to the Americans, German students barely had to pay for undergraduate education even before the elimination of tuition fees. Semester fees were on average 630$. As a student, you were entitled to cheaper transport costs and had many other similar benefits. Compared to the Europeans, American students graduate and have significant loan debt. High tuition fees in the U.S. have gone out of control. They now represent the second highest form of consumer-related debt in the country, with a total of $1.2 trillion. With these fees in mind, it might be a wise choice for American students to try out universities in Germany or any other European country.