Quantitative Economics

Admission
Prerequisites include a degree in economics or a degree in fields like business administration, social sciences, mathematics or physics.
Applicants should submit:

the completed and signed application form
C.V.
transcripts of their academic record
three letters of recommendation

Programme Structure
The programme consists of six, sometimes overlapping procedures:

Admission. You have to apply for the German visa as soon as possible, if required, and scholarship or find other financial support for your staying in Kiel (see question 5).
Completing the courses. You will have six hours of lectures each in the first and second semester, plus tutorials. The research seminar is a mandatory course too. Overall, you have to pass six exams in the first year. Two tries are given for every exam.
Writing the dissertation proposal by the 30^th September, of the second year of the programme. In a proposal you have to describe what questions you are going to answer, why they are important, what prior work exists, what information is needed to answer the questions, and how you plan to collect and analyze that data.
Writing the dissertation. It is the goal of all previous efforts. The dissertation has to demonstrate your competence in your chosen field.
Defending your dissertation. Having written your dissertation, you have to make a presentation to your supervisors and other faculty members on its methodology and findings. You must be prepared to justify your decisions and defend your conclusions.

Duration of Programme
The programme is designed to be completed in 3 years of full-time study and research.

Dissertation Project
The short answer is no. But the more clearly focused are you early, the better organised you will be selecting your courses and the more successful your participation in the program will be.

Supervisor
No. The structure of the programme does not require a supervisor upon application. Our students have the opportunity to find their supervisor during the first year of studies, while being already in Kiel.

Application materials
We cannot accept applications only sent by email. Please understand that we require a hard copy of your application documents.

TOEFL/IELTS
A test of English language proficiency is mandatory for applicants as long as they do not come from an English speaking country or have written their thesis in English (proof required). A letter from the university stating that the "medium of instruction has been English" is not sufficient.

Application without master’s degree
Yes. Many of our applicants finish their degree after applying or receive their certificate later. As you cannot send us yet the final transcript of records and degree certificate, we require a preliminary transcript of your master’s studies.

Financial Support
Partial scholarships contributing to the living expenses may be granted, although only for a very limited number of participants. Therefore, applicants are encouraged to apply to other institutions for financial support. Foreign applicants are especially encouraged to apply for a scholarship to the German Academic Exchange Service. See here.

DAAD scholarships
Some foundations, e.g. the DAAD (German Academic Exchange Service), ask in their application materials for a supervisor or an acceptance letter of a programme. Due to different application deadlines, being the DAAD’s usually already in October the year before ours in April, this is impossible. However, applicants can submit their documents to us already earlier and if they meet the formal criteria of our programme we will provide them with a letter of "general eligibility". This letter is accepted by the DAAD. The letter does not guarantee you a place in the programme. In case you receive a DAAD scholarship after submitting your application to us, please inform us.

Tuition Fees
Due to general state funding of university studies in Germany, there are no tuition fees for participants in the programme. However, you have to pay 103 € fee per semester to the student service centre and student union. In return, you get a bus ticket which allows you to use buses in Kiel for free. You can have a lunch in the student mensa for 2-5 €. Moreover, the university offers a wide range of sports activities to the students for a low price.

Selection Procedure
We accept every year between eight and twelve students to the programme. The selection procedure is a competitive one. An admission committee of four or five professors is reviewing all applications after the deadline on April 30, i.e. during May. The criteria of selection is strictly scientific qualification for the programme. The admission letters are usually send out around end of May, rejection letters until mid June, depending on the amount of applications.

Conditions and Facilities
Every candidate is provided with an office place and a computer with internet access for studying and researching. The programme also provides most of the literature needed for studying in the first year. There are two libraries you can use: Library of the Department of Economics at University of Kiel, and German National Library for Economics at Kiel Institute for World Economics, which is one of the largest libraries for economic literature in the world.

Accommodation
The student service centre offers student accommodation for the price 140-220 € per month, depending on the dormitory. Students are provided with single rooms, while a kitchen and bathroom is shared among 2-6 people. The rent contract starts on the 1st of September and lasts six months. The contract cannot be terminated during this period. Afterwards it can again be prolonged for six months again. For more information on the student accommodation in Kiel see here. Alternatively, you can choose private accommodation in Kiel. Rent of one-room-apartments cost 240-400 € per month. Another option is to rent a bigger apartment with 2-5 people. In this case the accommodation costs 200-300 € per month.

Staying in Kiel
Foreign students will need a German bank account. Some banks offer free accounts for students. Students need a health insurance, which costs between 60-75 €. Food, clothing and other needs will cost around 320-400 € per month, study materials 60 € per month. Together with accommodation the living costs add up to 600-785 € per month.

When living in Kiel you need to register in the town hall of Kiel, which is free. Moreover, when registering you can apply for the "welcome bonus". You can receive 150 € after living for one year as student in Kiel from the town hall.

The tutors of the programme will assist our students in arranging these matters.

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