Online studies for internationals
The Technical University of Applied Sciences Würzburg-Schweinfurt (THWS) is one of the largest universities of applied sciences in Bavaria. It is characterised by diverse study offers and a strong international focus, which helps prepare you optimally for the globalised job market. We make sure that our international students feel at home – in online studies and on site.
Apply now for the Online Pre-Year!
Check your qualification
Does your qualification meet our requirements?
Do you hold a qualification from outside the EU? Check here whether your qualification meets the requirements to study at a German higher education institution.
THWS can only evaluate your university entrance qualification (HZB) upon application. Here you can find further information on admission of international students. You can also self-assess your qualification on the DAAD website.
If not, we bring you up to speed!
If your qualification is not sufficient and the admissions database result is general admission to a preparatory course/the Feststellungsprüfung (university qualification exam), you have various options for obtaining a German HZB - one of them is our Online Pre-Year, which we offer in the Health and Environmental Psychology (B.Sc.) and Engineering Science (B.Eng.) degree programmes.
Do your German language skills suffice?
If you want to start studying at a German higher education institution, knowledge of German often is an important factor. At THWS, you generally need German language skills at level A2 for English-taught degree programmes, while German-taught programmes require German language skills at B2-or C1-level.
We support your learning German
Even though our new English-taught online degree programmes do not require any knowledge of German, it may be an advantage for you to learn German. German language skills enable you to transfer to a related German-taught degree programme or to continue your studies in Germany, perhaps in a German-taught master's programme. German language skills also give you the opportunity to complete an internship semester in a German company and set yourself apart from other applicants on the local labour market. After finally, a good knowledge of German will improve your chances of successfully integrating into the German labour market.
Advantages of our Online Pre-Year
We offer Online Pre-Years together with the German Jordanian University (GJU). These hold several advantages:
100 percent online
Students can study online from anywhere in the world, which significantly reduces the cost of living.
Englisch-taught
The Pre-Years are available entirely in English, so no knowledge of German is required.
Tailored to THWS
The Pre-Years are specially tailored to our Health and Environmental Psychology (B.Sc.) and Engineering Science (B.Eng.) degree programmes and enable a smooth transition to online studies. In Health and Environmental Psychology (B.Sc.), the Pre-Year can be fully credited, which saves time and money.
Flexible capacities
Thanks to scalable capacities, we can easily respond to increased demand.
What to expect from the Online Pre-Year
The Online Pre-Years will be established with a workload of 60 ECTS per study year each with fully digitalised modules from GJU's range of courses or completely newly developed in coordination with GJU. Upon successful completion, you obtain the subject-specific university entrance qualification (HZB) for the assigned THWS degree programme Health and Environmental Psychology (B.Sc.) or Engineering Science (B.Eng.).
As a participant, you will be enrolled as a student at GJU and pay fees directly to GJU. Physical presence is not necessary due to the completely digitalised course contents, including the laboratory courses.
The digitalisation of the Pre-Years follows the teaching concept for the degree programmes. You can expect primarily asynchronous courses (core study courses) that allow you to learn at your own pace. During the lecture periods, there is also a weekly programme of synchronous accompanying events (colloquium). Everything takes place 100 per cent online - including the exams.
Pre-Year for Engineering Science (B.Eng.)
By completing the Pre-Year for the online degree programme Engineering Science (B.Eng.), you will obtain the subject-specific higher education entrance qualification to study this degree programme at the THWS Online Campus. The Pre-Year also qualifies you to study related degree programmes at THWS or other German higher education institutions.
| Module | ECTS | CH |
|---|---|---|
| Probability and Statistics | 5 | 3 |
| Calculus I | 5 | 3 |
| Physics I | 5 | 3 |
| Computing Fundamentals | 6 | 3 |
| Computing Fundamentals Lab | 1 | |
| Technical Writing and Engineering Ethics | 3 | 2 |
| Module | ECTS | CH |
|---|---|---|
| Engineering Economics | 5 | 3 |
| Calculus II | 5 | 3 |
| Physics II | 5 | 3 |
| General Physics Lab | 2 | 1 |
| Computer Aided Engineering Drawing | 4 | 2 |
| Module | ECTS | CH |
|---|---|---|
| Statistics and Strength | 5 | 3 |
| Applied Mathematics for Engineers | 5 | 3 |
| Differential Equations | 5 | 3 |
Pre-Year for Psychology (B.Sc.)
By completing the Pre-Year for the online degree programme Health and Environmental Psychology (B. Sc.), you will obtain the subject-specific higher education entrance qualification to study this degree programme at the THWS Online Campus. The entire Pre-Year is accredited for your studies. The Pre-Year also qualifies you to study related degree programmes at THWS or other German higher education institutions.
| Module | ECTS | CH |
|---|---|---|
| Introduction to Psychology | 5 | 4 |
| General Psychology: Foundations of Learning Theories | 5 | 4 |
| Health Psychology I | 5 | 4 |
| Environmental Psychology I | 5 | 4 |
| Interdisciplinary Perspectives I | 5 | 4 |
| Introduction to Academic Work | 5 | 4 |
| Module | ECTS | CH |
|---|---|---|
| General Psychology: Psychological Functions | 5 | 4 |
| Biological Psychology | 5 | 4 |
| Health Psychology II | 5 | 4 |
| Interdisciplinary Perspectives II: General Electives | 5 | 4 |
| Counselling Skills | 5 | 4 |
| Research Methods in Psychology | 5 | 4 |
What are the fees for the Pre-Year?
These fees are due for the Pre-Year:
- JOD 1,500 for the first semester
- JOD 1,500 for the second semester
- JOD 750 for the summer semester
Application fees are waived for the first cohort.
Should you fail an exam, you can resit it against a fee of JOD 250.
For the Pre-Year at the German Jordanian University (GJU), you do not need proof of German health insurance, since you will be enrolled at GJU. For enrolment in the following Bachelor’s programme at THWS, you need to contact a German health insurance provider. More information on health insurance
How to apply for the Pre-Year
Application for the Pre-Year is possible from 15 July to 28 September 2025.
In order to apply for the Pre-Year, you need to create an account on our application platform CampusPortal. Once you have signed up, please choose 'Other Studies' and then the Pre-Year you would like to apply for. For the following blank, please choose '1st subject-related semester’. You will then be guided through the application process in the CampusPortal and asked to upload documents.
Which documents do I need?
- Proof of identity: passport
- University entrance qualifications: any degrees through which you qualify for university entrance in your home country (secondary/high school, college…) as well as any university or vocational education degrees
- Pre-evaluation: an official document that evaluates your degrees and classifies them according to the German system, e.g. preliminary review documentation (VPD) or statement of comparability (ZAB)
- Proof of English language skills: see here which language certificates are accepted
Click here for more information on the application process for international applicants
Have any questions about the Pre-Year or need support with your application? Contact us using our contact form.
Advantages of our German courses
We co-operate with the German Jordanian University (GJU) to create online German courses, which offer the following advantages:
100 percent online
With our German courses, you are independent of location and largely flexible in terms of time.
Barrier-free
Benefit from worldwide availability and barrier-free access.
Targeted
Our German courses are designed to enable you to study or work in Germany with the language skills you have developed.
Specialised
The language courses are geared towards the academic field and the respective specialist language.
High teaching quality
Our teachers are carefully selected and qualified. In addition, the quality of the GJU language programme is certified, the teaching concept behind it is tried and tested and the university offering it is also renowned for its German language centre, which is one of the largest in the world.
What to expect from our German courses
Our online German courses are established with fully digitalised modules from the language offer of the GJU German Language Centre. The courses are categorised according to the language levels of the Common European Framework of References for Languages.
As a participant, you will be enrolled as a student at GJU and pay fees directly to GJU.
All teaching content - asynchronous and synchronous - is fully digitalised so that you can participate from anywhere in the world.
The exams also take place 100 percent online. The exams are conducted by GJU. This does not entail the acquisition of an external certificate, but the courses will prepare you for this (especially for the TestDaF). You can also take the exams of relevant certificate providers on your own responsibility, or take the TestDaF at the GJU TestDaF Centre in person.
As a THWS student, you can also take language courses at our Campus for Language Proficiency (Campus Sprache). There we offer German and English courses at various levels (A1-C1). Further information about the Campus for Language Proficiency.
What are the contents of the German language course?
The German language course gradually brings you up to B2 level (according to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages CEFR) in the course of two years, starting with levels A1.1-A2.2 in the Pre-Year.
Academic Year 2025/26:
Semester 1 (Oct 2025-Jan 2026): A1.1
Semester 2 (Feb 2026-Jun 2026): A1.2 and A2.1
Summer term (Jul 2026-Aug 2026): A2.2
Academic Year 2026/27:
Semester 1 (Sept 2026-Jan 2027): B1.1 and B1.2
Semester 2 (Feb 2027-Jun 2027): B1.3 and B2.1
Summer term (Jul 2027-Aug 2027): B2.2
Alternatively, you can start your German classes in your second semester with A1.1 and finish with B2.2 in January 2028.
The course level plan for students starting their Pre-Year in October 2026 or later will be available in due course.
How and when do the classes take place?
German classes are organised by GJU's German Language Center (GLC).
Students beginning their Pre-Year in autumn 2025 or 2026...
...will attend 56 hours of live online classes per level. In order to ensure that students from different time zones can attend, two different time slots will be offered.
Course times:
Level A1.1. (2x2hrs/week, plus 1hr of self-study):
Monday and Wednesday, 09:00 - 11:00 am (Jordanian time, UTC+3) OR
Monday and Wednesday, 07:00 - 09:00 pm (Jordanian time, UTC+3)
Levels A1.2 - B2.2 (3x3hrs/week):
Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday, 08:30 - 11:30 am (Jordanian time, UTC+3) OR
Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday, 07:00 - 10:00 pm (Jordanian time, UTC+3)
Students are required to purchase the coursebooks for the respective level themselves (Netzwerk neu by Klett publishing house: Kursbuch, Übungsbuch, and Intensivtrainer).
Students beginning their Pre-Year in autumn 2027...
...or later will attend a blended learning format, with 90% asynchronous learning based on online material specifically developed by GJU language experts for this purpose, as well as tutoring, and 10% live online sessions available at two different time slots, which will also be recorded to ensure access for all students.
Course times of the live sessions:
Levels A1.1 - B1.2:
Thursdays, 09:00 - 11:00 am max. (Jordanian time, UTC+3) OR
Thursdays, 07:00 - 09:00 pm max. (Jordanian time, UTC+3)
From level B1.3 onwards, courses will take place live online (3x3hrs/week):
Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday, 08:30 - 11:30 am (Jordanian time, UTC+3) OR
Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday, 07:00 - 10:00 pm (Jordanian time, UTC+3)
From level B1.3, students are required to purchase the coursebooks for the respective level themselves (Netzwerk neu by Klett publishing house: Kursbuch, Übungsbuch, and Intensivtrainer).
How do I sign up?
You can only sign up once you have applied for the Pre-Year to either Engineering Science or Health and Environmental Psychology via the THWS Campusportal. Information regarding the registration for the German classes will be published here and on the GJU website in due course.
What are the fees for the German course?
The German language programme consists of six courses, staring with level A1.1 and bringing you up to level B2.2 within two years. The fee for each of these six courses is 450 JOD, not including the coursebooks required for some of the courses (for more information on the coursebooks, see ‘How and when do the classes take place?’).
Any questions? Contact us via the contact form.
