Atleast in Germany it is free for international students in many states. In some states where it is not completely free for international students, the fees is still pretty low.
Here in Germany it's very cheap (only around 260€/semester). I paid it myself. Nevertheless, the benefits that come with being a student here (health insurance, lower tax rates) prevail the costs.
Some might think I've "stolen" the opportunity to study from someone else, but in my field of study, we're always under capacity, so that's not a problem.
Just to add to that: I'm studying in Germany and pay 140 Euros per Semester, so 280 Euros or a bit more than 300$ per year. So another order of magnitude less than your estimate :)
Usually there are no tuition fees for anyone, including international students. (You have to pay administration fees which are a few 100 euros a semester.)
Do you know in which countries it's this way? The information I found about Germany I found says that they also don't have to pay tuition fees. I guess most countries don't need extra fees for foreigners because of the language barrier.
I'm a student at a German university, and I don't pay tuition fees, but I do pay about 400€ a year in "semester fees", of which the two largest components are "student services" and a compulsory season ticket for regional transport; student union membership and some kind of insurance contribution are also included.
Free in Germany. It used to cost 500 euros per semester. but you still get your bachelors and masters here for cheaper than a quarter at some schools. Our bachelors are 3 years masters are 2.
It is not about it being completely free. The whole point is how 235€ or even 1000€ per semester is nothing compared to tens of thousands americans pay in tuiton. Top universities in the US like MIT and Stanford charge over $40000 per year. With half of that you could comfortably live as a student in Germany for a year with all expenses paid. I live as a student in Germany on 650€/mo. That's less than $10000 a year.
I don't think it is free for foreigners. It is just that those fees you have to pay (maybe a few hundred Euros per term[0]) are nothing compared to what it costs to attend an US university.
However, since more and more Germans want to go to uni some fields of study are jammed with students in recent years. This in turn means that the quality of education goes down (for example: not enough capacities for tutors and not enough actual seats for students) So from that perspective it doesn't make sense for German taxpayers. If capacities are already stressed getting more students doesn't help.
On a more human level it is probably beneficial when Germans and Americans form more friendships and thus learn to understand eachothers views of the world.
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[0]"Although you can study in Germany for free at public institutions as an undergraduate, there is a charge per semester for enrolment, confirmation and administration – usually between €150 and €250 (US$170-280) depending on the university. There may be an additional charge of around €100 for a “Semesterticket”, which covers public transport expenses for six months. If you exceed the standard period of study by more than four semesters, you may also face a long-term fee charge, which could be as much as €800 (US$920) per semester." www.topuniversities.com/.../how-much-does-it-cost-study-germany
Yep, there are no additional fees. https://www.tum.de/en/studies/fees-and-financial-aid/ Compared to the U.S. situation, it's funny to see universities talking about financial aid for those that cannot afford the yearly fee of €258.80. Note that many other things are also vastly cheaper at German universities; for example textbook prices are reasonable, on-campus dining is dirt cheap, etc.
In some, especially Europpean, countries such thing exist, and it's called tax. Besides paying taxes, there's no additional fees for attending university.
University is mostly free in germany too (there's an administrative fee of ~200€ per semester). Those loans are just to cover living expenses so that everyone has a chance to study even when parents can't provide support.
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