TheMonster Newbie United States Joined 5734 days ago 20 posts - 20 votes Speaks: English* Studies: German
| Message 1 of 8 04 April 2009 at 5:16pm | IP Logged |
I'm going to Germany in the summer and am very scared about my money situation. Life takes us all by surprise and I was planning to have about 1500 dollars not including the flight, to take to specifically Neheim, for a month. But, alas, I'm only looking at having between 500 - 700 dollars. I will not have to worry about paying for hotels or anything seeing as I have a place to stay and food will not be a problem 90% of them time. I'm basically asking is it reasonable to assume I'll have enough to live off of. I can't really think what else I would have to pay for. Any tips? Any thing else that could help me out. I'm really struggling to make this money, juggling a job, school, learning the language, spending time with girlfriend. Some big things came up and I lost a fair amount of money due to it.
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Paramecium Tetraglot Groupie Germany Joined 5718 days ago 46 posts - 59 votes Speaks: German*, English, French, Russian Studies: Japanese
| Message 2 of 8 05 April 2009 at 11:39am | IP Logged |
How long will you stay at Germany? Most of the students in Germany have even less money available a month, have to pay for flat and food and they also get along with it. So don't worry so much. If you will keep your money a bit when you are there (no expensive restaurants, stay away of the expensive shops for tourist ect.) you will have no problems.
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!LH@N Triglot Senior Member Germany Joined 6827 days ago 487 posts - 531 votes Speaks: German, Turkish*, English Studies: Serbo-Croatian, Spanish
| Message 3 of 8 06 April 2009 at 11:55am | IP Logged |
Yeah, I for example, will get about 650€ a month from the government from which I will have to live off when I will go to college in Braunschweig in a few months, so I think as long as you are not planing to live there for several months and buy any expensive things, you should be fine.
Regards,
Ilhan
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heartnsoul Triglot Groupie United States Joined 5727 days ago 45 posts - 47 votes Speaks: Mandarin, English*, Spanish Studies: Italian, German, Greek
| Message 4 of 8 16 April 2009 at 4:20am | IP Logged |
I agree with the others. Just be careful of your spending and don't buy too many expensive things, and you should be fine. Since your food and board is already covered, this would just be money for daily activities - right? I would not worry, that should be enough.
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manpped Groupie United States Joined 5961 days ago 55 posts - 71 votes Speaks: English* Studies: German, Japanese, Spanish Studies: Sign Language
| Message 5 of 8 16 April 2009 at 9:26pm | IP Logged |
Also, if you DO have to buy food, I've been pleasantly surprised by food costs at Lidl and Aldi. I can usually leave with A LOT of groceries for only 20€. Good chocolate is cheap, so you won't have problems there! ;)
I'm studying in NRW right now. So far, most of my money has been sunk into two things: food and transportation. I've been traveling a lot in and outside of German, and I haven't been as diligent with checking for cheap tickets. If you take advantage of Bahn-50 cards and Schönes Wochenende tickets, you should be fine with in-Germany travel.
Bratwursts + Döners tend to run around 2-3€. Döners are cheap and amazing. If you're out with friends, you won't have too much trouble finding a quick bite to eat.
Hm... you should be fine. It sounds like your "living costs" are well taken care of. If you need any other price estimates, just ask. I was worried about money before my study abroad, too! I've bought a bit too much fun stuff--art supplies, CDs, etc.--but that's my own fault. :) If you want to spend your "fun money" wisely, you'll probably have a fleamarket nearby that will help cut costs.
Most importantly, have fun! Study abroad can be trying--agh, language barriers in the doctor's office!--but it's worth it. At the very least, my German comprehension has gotten a lot better. (My speaking, not so much. If you're not shy, I recommend jumping in with German practice ASAP. The longer you wait, the harder it becomes.)
Viel Glück. ;)
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paparaciii Diglot Senior Member Latvia Joined 6342 days ago 204 posts - 223 votes Speaks: Latvian*, Russian Studies: English
| Message 6 of 8 22 April 2009 at 4:38am | IP Logged |
Well, your allowance will be just ok but haven't you considered a bank robbery?
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cordelia0507 Senior Member United Kingdom Joined 5844 days ago 1473 posts - 2176 votes Speaks: Swedish* Studies: German, Russian
| Message 7 of 8 16 May 2009 at 3:11pm | IP Logged |
Is there a fee for studying at German universities or is it "free" e.g. tax subsidised?
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Pyx Diglot Senior Member China Joined 5741 days ago 670 posts - 892 votes Speaks: German*, English Studies: Mandarin
| Message 8 of 8 16 May 2009 at 3:46pm | IP Logged |
Depends on the state, but in many it's free, and in the others the costs are neglectable (500E per semester, if I remember correctly)
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