Master's and continuing education programs

So-called consecutive Master's programs build on the content of a previous Bachelor's program, i.e. they enhance the knowledge acquired or offer the opportunity to learn additional skills in another discipline. For example, after obtaining a Bachelor's degree in Physics, one can choose to pursue a corresponding Master's degree in Physics to acquire deeper knowledge and especially a research-oriented perspective in the discipline. One must, for instance, choose to pursue a Master's degree in Journalism to acquire specialist and professional skills for journalistic work (e.g. science journalism). A consecutive Master's program, together with an appropriate Bachelor's program, is classed as a basic course of studies. For this reason, a consecutive Master's program is eligible for BAföG funding. The standard period of study is 4 semesters at the most.

In addition to a university degree, continuing education programs require relevant professional experience of at least one year. The length varies between 1-4 semesters, depending on the courses offered.