For many years now, the industry and the unions have been advocating the opening of universities for master craftsmen and qualified professionals without A-levels. This effort seems to yield first results, for the number of first-time students without a university entrance qualification has skyrocketed. However, the situation is very different in the respective federal states.
In the winter semester 2010/2011, approximately 10,000 of the roughly 450,000 first-time students in Germany had neither a university entrance qualification, nor an advanced technical college entrance qualification. The rate of first-time students without a classical university entrance qualification thus was at 2.1 per cent and as high as never before.
This was the result of a study by the Centrum für Hochschulentwicklung (CHE - Centre for Higher Education). Accordingly, the number of first-time students without a university entrance qualification has almost doubled compared to 2007.
In March 2009, in the wake of the education summit of the federal government and the federal states, the Standing Conference of State Education Ministers (KMK) has significantly facilitated university access for master craftsmen and qualified professionals without a university entrance qualification.
According to the study, universities now provide also an increasing number of specific study courses for this target group. Here, North Rhine-Westphalia is in the lead with 4.2 per cent and thus the highest share of first-time students without a classical university entrance qualification. One reason for this can be found in the work of the centralFernuniversität Hagen (Distance Learning University Hagen), which has the highest rate of first-time students without a university entrance qualification of all German universities.
The rate of students without a university entrance qualification in Berlin is 3.7 per cent. With rates ranging between 0.9 and 0.4 per cent, Thuringia, Saxony and the Saarland come last in this ranking. According to the study, 14 of 16 federal states have significantly improved their admission criteria for studying without a university entrance qualification. Conversely, Brandenburg and Saxony have not yet implemented the KMK recommendations.
As a rule, master craftsmen or persons with comparable vocational training qualifications are equal to persons holding a university entrance qualification. They can apply for any study course they choose. All 16 German federal states make provisions for limited university access for persons who have completed their vocational training and have several years of practical experience in their occupational field. Their choice of study course has to be in a similar field as their professional occupation and experience to that point.
Yet in spite of the comprehensive improvements, the study criticises the persistence of very disparate detail and exemption clauses in all federal states. "Accordingly, people without a university entrance qualification who want to study have to intensively fight their way through a jungle of regulations in order to be fully informed as regards the special conditions in the various federal states", said Sigrun Nickel, CHE project manager.
Also, there continues to be a lack of scholarship grants for people without a university entrance qualification wanting to study. Here, she says, the industry likewise is required to show greater commitment. Compared to other countries, the number of first-time students without a university entrance qualification in Germany continues to be infinitesimally small.
According to the latest "European Student Report", 36 per cent of students in Sweden have no classical university entrance qualification and manage to enter university by way of their professional qualification.