Day 193: The German university system

The German education system, at least at the university level, is designed to get the most out of everyone — both geniuses and those who aren’t quite as bright. In the first years, they teach the basics, and then, once you’ve decided what you want to specialize in, that’s when you start studying the more complex stuff.

Classes cover everything in a very clear and structured way: the most basic aspects of the subject, with a strong emphasis on what’s most important. This contrasts with Spanish classes, where you get tons and tons of theory thrown at you in each lecture, and then you have to cram an enormous pile of notes, of which you’ll remember about 5% a year after passing the exam (if you have a good memory!).

The professors (at least the ones I’ve had) are excellent and explain the material in a fun and engaging way. For example: as a good chemistry student, I have to study the electromagnetic spectrum (and not the “home appliance spectrum” as one of my classmates from Salamanca once called it :) ). That is, the rainbow. Instead of using the same old boring diagram, the professor showed us the cover of Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon album — the one with a prism and a rainbow coming out of it. They also don’t hold back on visual jokes (the one I’ve attached is just one of thousands).

They also encourage a participatory atmosphere in which anyone can stop the class to ask anything at all, no matter if it’s stupid or brilliant — they don’t mind repeating the same idea over and over. Writing this reminds me of something a professor from Salamanca once said: “I can either answer your question, or just fail you on the spot.”

When it comes to exams, there are no tricky questions or convoluted exercises: just concise, straightforward questions about the most important topics in the subject, where you can show that you understand it — not that you can recall the weirdest data point (the exact number with three decimals) from the bibliography, or that you can develop in 10 minutes a theory that took a Nobel Prize winner three years to come up with.

Okay, I barely know any German, and that’s why I’m having a really hard time passing — I can’t help but think how much I could be learning if I understood everything. That’s why I don’t understand how Germans, with all these resources (and I’m not even getting into things like lab equipment or company internships), still fail, or how the really smart ones, the nerds, aren’t earning three degrees at the same time — which would totally be possible.

What’s the result of this system? Everyone learns and nobody wastes time. There aren’t 27-year-olds trying to finish their third year, or degrees that on average take three years longer than they should. If you just want to work as a chemist, then in three or four years you finish the basic level of the degree and you’re qualified for any related job. If you want to know a lot more, with research in mind, then you study two more years. The university at the service of the people.

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