THWS and studying in Germany

THWS stands for the abbreviation of the university's name in German (Technische Hochschule Würzburg-Schweinfurt). The Technical University of Applied Sciences Würzburg-Schweinfurt (THWS) is one of the biggest universities of applied sciences in the famous federal state of Bavaria (south-east of Germany). It is located in the very north of Bavaria and, therefore, quite centrally within Germany. There are 10 faculties divided between two cities: Würzburg and Schweinfurt. THWS offers more than 50 bachelor's and master's programmes for different disciplines, both in German and English. It profiles in internationalisation. About 20 percent of the student body has an international background.

The B. Eng. Hydrogen Technology (Transnational) is taught at the Campus Ignaz Schön (Ignaz-Schön-Straße 11), in Schweinfurt.

Schweinfurt with its 55.000 residents is an important business hub with long-standing tradition, located in northern Bavaria, Germany. Many leading regional and international companies are located here, for example ZF, (FAG) Schaeffler, SKF, Bosch Rexroth, Fresenius Medical Care, SRAM, SenerTec and Winora. Thanks to their proximity as well as to co-operations between THWS and the local industry, students have plenty of possibilities for internships, projects, bachelor's theses, and the start of their professional careers.

For students, the conditions in Schweinfurt with low rent and living expenses are good. There is a train station and the motorways A7, A70 and A71 as well as a well-developed public (bus) transport. Additionally, Schweinfurt has a lot to offer in terms of recreational activities and cultural events. It has a well-established bar scene and significant museums.

More information about living in Schweinfurt can be found on the cities' website. Recreational activities offered by the THWS such as cultural events or sports in Schweinfurt can be looked up at the THWS International website.

In Germany, the workload is measured using ECTS credits instead of Credit Hours (CH) as at GJU. ECTS (European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System) credits are a European standard and indicate the amount of work required to complete a programme of study or a module within a study programme (student work load). ECTS credits indicate only the amount of work required, not the contact/lecturing hours or the grade. 1 ECTS corresponds to the average expected student workload of 30 hours. You can find the ECTS points you receive for each module in the module handbook [LINK].

Typically a modules is a set of courses on a specific topic - sometimes it is only one course. To complete a module and to get your module credits and grade, you have to accomplish all courses belonging to the module.

The grading scheme at German universities usually comprises five levels (with numerical equivalents; intermediate grades may be given):

• “Sehr gut” (1) = very good
• “Gut” (2) = good
• “Befriedigend” (3) = satisfactory
• “Ausreichend” (4) = sufficient
• “Nicht ausreichend” (5) = insufficient/fail

The minimum passing grade is “Ausreichend” (4).