Application to the Master of Science in "Computational Sciences"
All candidates have to go through a selection process to fill the available spaces in the study program. The process is as follows:
The admission committee will check the formal admission criteria according to the Admission Regulations, i.e. 21 CP in Mathematics and Computer Science, 12 CP in Natural Sciences and the knowledge of a programming language.
Forming a ranking based on the final grade of the BSc studies.*
Invitation of the best candidates to short interviews with the admissions committee. The points given for the interview are added to the points based on the BSc grade.*
The best candidates will then be notified to the student registry office, which will then in a second step check the formal, official prerequisites for enrolment.
Applicants will be informed about their admission (via e-mail and Klips 2.0).
Successful applicants will be given a period of seven days in which to accept the offer of admission in Klips 2.0. The acceptance of the offer is not yet an enrolment! Enrolment at the Student Application and Registration Office or at the International Office has to be finalized via Klips 2.0 by 30 September each year.
Applicants who cannot be admitted at the end of the selection procedure will receive a rejection notice with instructions on how to appeal.
*These steps are only applicable, if there are more applicants than the number of available spaces for admission.
In the application, the candidate must state the desired Area of Specialization:
A start is only possible for the winter semester. The application portal opens beginning of June, and the corresponding deadline is 15 July of the same year.
International students: Students who did not complete their secondary education in Germany must first request a preliminary review documentation (VPD) from uni-assist (recommendation: please apply for the VPD as early as possible, by 30 June at the latest). Please prepare for your visa application well in advance, if needed! For more information, see section "Applications from students who did not complete their secondary education in Germany" below.
Required Documents
Applications with complete documentation
The MSc degree is a consecutive degree program which builds up on the first degree of a candidate (in general a BSc). If you have already completed your first degree (in Germany), then you need to include the following documentation in your application:
BSc certificate
Transcript of Records of your BSc
Curriculum Vitae
School Leaving Certificate (Hochschulzugangsberechtigung)
Proof of other qualifications (e.g. work experience, periods of time abroad, internships if applicable)
You are further asked to outline how you meet the formal admission criteria, and your knowledge of a programming language.
PLEASE NOTE: For applicants who have completed their secondary education in Germany, but have qualifications/degrees from countries other than Germany, officially certified translations of copies of the qualifications (if these are not already in English or in German) must be supplied.
Applications with provisional documents
If you expect to have completed your undergraduate degree in Germany before you begin your MSc, but are not yet in possession of your degree certificate, then you can apply with provisional documentation. In this case, please provide the following documentation:
Transcript of Records, which document all the examinations and assessments which you have achieved at the time of application.
Transparent calculation of the provisional overall grade for your BSc on the basis of the examinations and assessments documented in the Transcript of Records
Curriculum Vitae
School Leaving Certificate (Hochschulzugangsberechtigung)
Proof of other qualifications (e.g. work experience, periods of time abroad, internships if applicable).
You are further asked to outline how you meet the formal admission criteria, and your knowledge of a programming language.
Please note: Students who apply with provisional documentation will only be provisionally admitted to the degree program. They will have time until the end of the first semester of the degree program to hand in the final outstanding documentation to the student registry office. If the student does not do this they will automatically be ex-matriculated.
Applications for entry into a higher semester
If you are already enrolled into a different Master course in Computational Sciences (or a comparable focus) and successfully completed a significant amount of examinations, you may apply for entering our Master programme into a higher semester. Applications for entry into a higher semester are possible for both winter semesters (deadline: September 15) and summer semesters (deadline: March 15).
In this case, you will have to upload an additional "Fachsemestereinstufung" to Klips 2.0 during the application process. This document proves that you meet the admission requirements for the M. Sc. Computational Sciences and that you have enough credit points to enter into a higher semester.
The "Fachsemestereinstufung" can only be issued by the examination office. Please send the following documents to 1):
BSc certificate
Transcript of Records of your BSc
Transcript of Records of your previous Master studies
Proof of knowledge of a higher programming language (by e.g. certificate or bachelor thesis)
Curriculum Vitae
Proof of other qualification (e.g. work experience, periods of time abroad, internships if applicable)
Please submit these documents at least two weeks before the application deadline so that your documents can be checked in time. If you meet the requirements, you will then receive a corresponding "Fachsemestereinstufung" to complete your application in Klips 2.0.
Please note: Applications for entry into a higher semester are not possible for students who did not complete their secondary education in Germany.
In case of questions or problems please contact: info-compscie@uni-koeln.de
1) Applications for the Master's program Computational Sciences will be administered by the examination office of the Department of Geosciences. This is independent of the Area of Specialization that you apply for.
Applications from students who did not complete their secondary education in Germany
Please note the mandatory two-stage application process for candidates from this group:
Request a preliminary review documentation (VPD) from uni-assist (recommendation: please apply for the VPD as early as possible, at least three weeks prior to the application deadline of UoC)
Apply via the application portal of the University of Cologne Klips 2.0
When applying for a master’s degree, the VPD indicates whether you meet the formal requirements for a master’s degree at the University of Cologne. After your documents have been checked by uni-assist and you have received the result (VPD), create an online application in the University of Cologne Klips 2.0 application portal. An application for this master program is only possible with a valid VPD issued for the University of Cologne. The application for preliminary review documentation (VPD) at uni-assist alone does not count as an application for a degree program at the University of Cologne.
During stage 2 (application via the application portal of the University of Cologne Klips 2.0) you will have to hand in the following application documents:
Curriculum vitae in English
Letter of Motivation (max. 1 page)
B. Sc. (or equivalent) certificate (certified English translation if the original language is not English or German)*
Transcript of records showing the awarded credits*
Proof of proficiency in English (at least a score of 80 in the TOEFL Internet-based test, or equivalent)**
Proof of knowledge of a higher programming language (by e.g. certificate or bachelor thesis)
Optional: Proof of other qualifications (e. g. professional practice, internships, stays abroad)
* The proof has to be an attested copy. ** The admission committee can accept a valid certificate that confirms that you have completed a degree program that has been taught exclusively in English.
Please note: Candidates from this group have to register to uni-assist by 30 June at the latest in order to apply to the desired master program in time.
Avoid long waiting times for a visa and ensure timely enrolment for the study program upon admission!
As an international student, you need a visa and proof of sufficient funds. The visa process can take several months, so we recommend applying for a visa in good time. You can usually make an appointment to apply for a visa before you receive your admission letter. But you will definitely need your admission letter at the appointment.
Learn about the specific documents required for your visa application, the required level of financial proof, and the available funding options for your studies in Germany.
