h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Hello all! I know this is probably the wrong place to ask this, but I'm getting desperate and I hope one of you lovely German people can help me out. I'm looking for information on the Weimar German education system (1918-33). Specifically, at what ages would one have transferred school (Grundschul to Mittelschul to Gymnasium or something like that - everywhere I have looked is very vague), and at what age did one begin university? And was university entry dependent on the Abitur? I would really appreciate it if someone could help me out, or let me know of any useful books, websites, etc. Thank you very much!

hi

I unfortunately have no idea about all that. Could anyone of the others please help?

Hi BP. :_)

That was well before my püarent's time, and none of my grand parents are still alive, but I'll try to find some infor for you. I think school started earlier than it does nowadays, but people changed from Grundschule to either Mittel or Gymnasium later than nowadays.
I'll see what I can find.

I've found this link, hope it helps.

http://www.uni-duisburg-essen.de/bfp/lehre/pdf/Skript%20Oktober%2004_05.pdf

Well, here's the development of the school system http://integration-saarland.de/mathematik.htm

I'll look around, though

Hi BP, the link provided by B'Elana should answer most questions, but the age for starting school isn't mentioned. I couldn't find any information elsewhere, so I think it's the same as nowadays - you start with Grundschule at the age of six, and after four years you changed to the next school form (provided you didn't need to repeat a year). In the Weimar Republic it would be either four years of Volksschule (People's School), 6 years of Mittelschule (Middle School), or nine years of Gymnasium. Hope this helps.

Thanks for your help everyone, that's fantastic. I hope my German is up to this article though. I'll let you know how I get on.

A quick question - in the UK, students apply to universities in the autumn of their last year at school. By spring, the universities have sent them offers based on their A-level grades. In May/June, the students do their A-levels, and in August, they get their results and find out if they have the grades for their university place. Is this process different in Germany - at what stage do students find out if they have a university place or not?

That depends entirely on the subject you're studying - some subjects, at some universities, you just show up. Others are still (although that's changing) regulated by the Zentralstelle für die Vergabe von Studienplätzen (ZVS) where you have to apply with your first and second choice of universities, though they may send you somewhere else entirely.

I applied and did the entrance exams for several universities - some before Abitur, with only my Zulassungsbescheinigung (proof that you'll be taking the final exams) and some after, when I already knew my grades...

Here's the ZVS site, by the way...

http://www.zvs.de/

And you can find more information on the websites of the universities, usually just www.uni-insertcityhere.de - mine's http://www.uni-wuppertal.de , for example

Hey, I'm expert on this subject

If you're doing your Abi (a-levels), your exams take place in april/may. You get your results and your leaving certificate in june. The application deadline for universities is july 15th for the following winter-term (starting in october). So, little time to send out applications. And then - you wait. If the uni is quick, you find out whether you're in or not in august. Some unis don't tell you if you're not in. There are several "Nachrückverfahren", so if you're lucky on the second, third or fourth chance, you get the notice around october , which is ideally the time by which you've already chosen another town, rented a flat, etc.

There are still a few couses of study which are "open" to anyone with a-levels. You just sign in in september. But these are becoming fewer.

And there are those subjects which are still "handed out" by the ZVS. These are popular subjects, which are (understandably I think) restricted, like biology, medicine, pharmacy, psychology. But the tendency is towards giving the unis freedom to chose their students themselves. So, the ZVS is slowly closing down I believe

Thanks very much, you're all wonderful. Have some cake, it's the least I can do.
Another question (sorry about all this) - do you have boarding schools in Germany?

Is that where you stay for the school terms except for holidays? We have them, but they're very expensive, it's more an elite/rich men thing.

They're very very few. One that's always connected with the term "elite" is the private boarding school Salem http://www.salemcollege.de/