Hi everyone, I'm considering applying to FU Berlin, does anyone have experiences with this programme or studying in Germany in general? What are the career prospects like? The scope seems to cover quite a lot, how is that in practice?

Best,
Reynold

PS: https://llm-guide.com/schools/europe/germany/fu-berlin-institute-for-german-and-european-business-competition-and-regulatory-law that's the one I am considering...

I was also considering this programme :-) The lecturers seem interesting (http://www.jura.fu-berlin.de/en/studium/masterstudiengaenge/mbl-fu/single_degree/Lecturers/index.html) but lectures are only Thursday to Saturday? I talked to someone from Berlin and they said it's comparably cheap (for a Western European capitol). Does anyone know more?

Hi ReynDear, I am considering FU Berlin among other universities. I need a program in English since I can't speak German or Dutch. The scope and lectures sound great and I wonder what the career possibilities are like.

I think I will definitely apply since they don't charge an application fee but I am not sure whether they'll accept me.

Hi there,

I think I might be able to provide some information for you three (and maybe others) but let me quickly clarify, that I work for the MBL programme :-)

We do, indeed, cover a wide range of topics and yes, we can do so by inviting a variety of lecturers from all over the world to teach at our programme. That's also why we offer lectures on Saturdays and Fridays (and seminars etc. on Thursdays). Studying in Germany can be an exciting experience and Berlin surely is the most international city in Germany. Compared with London or Paris, Berlin is fairly affordable, even within Germany Berlin is not as expensive as Hamburg or Munich. The programme is completely in English, though you can, of course, use the time here to also learn some German ;-) A degree from our programme surely is a valuable asset whichever career path you chose and students from us have gone into academia, returned to their homecountry to work for their government, stayed in Europe to work for multinational companies and law firms or decided to become judges. Maybe I can find an Alumni willing to share their experience with you guys, if you would like that?

Best,
Dominik

Hi, I am a current student (2016/2017) finishing up the fourth module of this program. I cannot yet speak of career prospects following this program - although some of our professors have said that EU competition compliance lawyers find increasing demand here. Studying in Germany has been a hugely positive experience for me. The Freie Uni is modern, well-equipped, technologically up-to-date, there are subsidized cafeterias on campus (you usually pay less than 5€ for a full hearty meal with a drink), and the German efficiency is not a myth - it is wonderful. Things get done promptly and correctly. Berlin is definitely cheaper in terms of food and rent than Paris (and probably London). Back to the program: some of the professors make you fall in love with them. They are amazing academics and teachers. They fly in to Berlin for two days, sometimes from across the globe, basically motivated by their passion for teaching. I'm very grateful for that (considering that the tuition for this program - in comparison to other LLM's - is not exorbitant, at all). One thing to remember: you have to like, or at least not actively dislike, economics. You get introduced to basic economic concepts (which are not exactly simple, when you are an absolute beginner), as this is a crucial part of competition law. You also get a nice introduction to the EU law, which is, needless to say, of huge importance here in Europe.
I am here for other questions!

Thank you all!

@easy_tiger: lol I also don't speak German, but as MBL-FU said, that's not necessary *pew*

@MBL-FU: Nice to have someone from the programme here, I have two more questions: What about student accommodation in Berlin? The profile says 100% international students, what is the mixture like? More European or worldwide or is there a specific focus?

@Kangaroo: hehe, food is important :-D It sounds like you're having a great time in Berlin. Say, if it is not too personal: Where are you from and what will you do with your degree afterwards?

Hey ReynDear, not personal at all! I'm from Montréal, but I am hugely motivated to try to find work here in Germany, because my siblings, who mean a lot to me, have permanently settled in Western Europe. Germany seems to treat its foreign graduates well in terms of post-study visa and work permits. I'm going to do some digging around for job prospects during the upcoming spring break (which is very long! Ours is 7 weeks, March and most of April!)

[Edited by Kangaroo on Feb 08, 2017]

I can also comment on the mix of nationalities in my class. One quarter comes from Turkey (my favourite people), almost a quarter comes from Colombia, 2 Europeans (Romania & Kosovo), 3 North Americans (USA, Canada, Mexico) and a few awesomely diverse nationalities (Kenya, Paraguay, Brazil, Pakistan). We like each other :-)

That sounds cool! I think the quality of the lecturers is important and supervision in general! Say, to what degree do they accommodate requests or whishes by student? Only two European students? :D Didn't expect that!

Only two European students? :D Didn't expect that!

Thank you Kangaroo for you answer, also thank you MBL-FU. May I ask in what capacity you work for the programme?

What is your favourite part/lecture/topic, Kangaroo?
I can't wait, this really sounds cool!

Hey Easy Tiger (looool, I love how a kangaroo, a tiger and a reindeer are having a discussion here), I'd say that the core subjects of merger control, abuse of dominant position and cartels are the most interesting things (I didn't think I would like them as much as I do - merger control smacks of corporate law which was not necessarily my favourite topic before - but it's so much more than corp. law). But then there are also topics that are made amazing by the quality of the particular professor - for example, professor Andrea Biondi made EU state aid so great that we didn't want to break for lunch :) He was so entertaining. Professor David Bailey, whom I sadly had to miss because of an injury, was apparently an even bigger superstar. Also, we had this one tutorial on European Union lobbying by a lawyer named Andreas Geiger, and his stories from practice were absolutely wildly fascinating. But full disclosure: other lectures require long periods of concentration, on less enthralling subjects, and this is sometimes challenging...

Dear All,

Thanks for the intense interst into our programme. Let's see whether I can help with some of your questions.

@ ReynDear: Regarding accommodation, most students find private accommodation in either an appartment or a shared flat. The Student Union helps students with lots of suggestions, an exchange forum for tenants and landlords and through student accommodation. The latter, however, is usually in high demand. Unless you have special needs (students with children or disability), they cannot guarantee to find a flat for you. You can find information here: http://www.studentenwerk-berlin.de/en/wohnen/

@ReynDear and @sunyun: Regarding the background of our students, the composition differs strongly every year. Last year, we had a lot of students from Eastern Europe (Poland, Bulgaria, Macedonia and more) and the year before we had a lot of students from Western Europe (France, UK, Ireland, Germany, Spain, Italy and Iceland). We always aim for a good mixture and usually have a highly diverse class but we also don't reject students just because we already have another applicant from the same country ;-)

@easy_tiger: I'm teaching assistant with the MBL programme :-)

@Kangaroo: Thank you so much for your input!

Best,
Dominik

Hi Kangaroo, thanks a lot for the info! Definitely good to help me understand what to expect! Good luck with your efforts to find work in Germany! I definitely also consider this an option! The lecturers sound really cool and from all over the place, they probably have very different approaches to law :-D

Hi MBL-FU (or Dominik?), thanks, so I guess I would be looking for a shared flat in Berlin to also meet mor people :-) Hah, that's quite funny these random focusses on specific groups, sounds very diverse in any case!

@Kangaroo: Hah, indeed! Ah, so the essential 3, and cool that you like the lecturers. Say, what's the ratio of academics to practitioners?

@MBL-FU: Thank you! I might come back to you for more questions :-)

Hi again, Easy Tiger, here are the stats so far (for the 1st semester that we just wrapped up):

total number of instructors: 17
of which professors: 9

:-)

Hi again, Easy Tiger, here are the stats so far (for the 1st semester that we just wrapped up):

total number of instructors: 17
of which professors: 9

:-)

Hi Kangaroo,

Many thanks, that is a lot of instructors! I never had classes which were always taught by a different lecturer, do you like it (the concept)?
The Tiger ;-)

Hello!

I was considering this program as well, but have realized that it does not correspond to my picture of what the LL.M. experience should be like.

I was informed that most of the lecturers (and they make quite a prestigious lot, I must say) fly in to Berlin for their weekend block of lectures, and are not 'present' for the rest of the class / semester. This to me seems more like a professional weekend seminar rather then an LL.M. program, where I would love to have profesor / lecturer follow me through the year or at least the semester. Combination of this factor as well as only weekend lectures have turned me down, as I would prefer a more 'hands on' approach by teaching staff.

Question:

I was told to upload my official transcripts on the school's website. I ordered them and scanned and uploaded them. They all say "PRINTED COPY" which is normal since the document is watermarked and protected.

Now my question is this - what is the point of asking a student to upload his official transcripts and spend money and time doing it, if the school will most likely ask the institution to send them the transcripts anyway?

Is it different in Europe? In the US we use a third party that collects all the transcripts from the universities and sends out - completely leaving the student out of the process.

In Europe students just upload the transcripts and that's normal? Again, don't the schools ask for the same from the institutions anyway? I don't really know why they would ask since they are official bloody documents.

Anyway, would love to hear what you guys think.

Cheers