u/One_Spliff

Hi everyone, I’m an international student and I’d like to get an HIV test for peace of mind. I don’t speak German very well.

Could someone recommend a place in Nürnberg or nearby where I can get a free and anonymous HIV test, preferably without an appointment?

Also, I was planning to go to the Gesundheitsamt in Nürnberg. Can I just walk in and ask for an HIV test, or do I need to make an appointment ?

Any suggestions and help would be appreciated :)

Hi everyone, I’m an international student in Erlangen and I’d like to get an HIV test for peace of mind. I don’t speak German very well.

Could someone recommend a place in Erlangen or Nürnberg where I can get a free and anonymous HIV test, preferably without an appointment?

Also, I‘m planning to go to the Gesundheitsamt in Nürnberg. Can I just walk in and ask for an HIV test, or do I need to make an appointment ?

Any suggestions and help would be appreciated :)

I’m 22M from North India. I completed my B.Tech in ECE from a Tier-3 college with an 8.3 CGPA.

During college I went through a lot of personal issues including depression, a bad breakup and some unhealthy coping habits. Because of that I kind of disconnected from reality and lost focus on both academics and career development.

Looking back, I honestly feel like I just survived engineering. I mostly got through exams using previous year papers and patterns, so my fundamentals are pretty weak. I didn’t do any internships, part-time work or anything significant outside college. I only have 2-3 small projects.

I graduated last year and only recently started learning C from scratch. In a few months I’ll be moving to Germany for a Master’s in Embedded Systems and I have around 4 months before the program starts.

The reason I’m posting this is because I genuinely feel behind. Sometimes I look at other people and they already have internships, strong coding skills, research experience, etc., while I feel like I’m starting from zero and regret lot about my stupid decisions .

So I wanted to ask:
• If you were in my position, what would you focus on during the next 4 months before starting the master’s?

• During the next 3-4 years in Germany, what skills, technologies and projects should I focus on if I want to become competitive for embedded systems jobs globally?

• If things don’t work out in Germany (mainly because of the language barrier), does a Master’s from a German public university still have value back in India?

I’m not looking for sympathy or reassurance. I know I made mistakes and wasted opportunities during my bachelor’s. What I’m trying to figure out is whether recovery is realistic from this point (I really want to) and what the smartest path forward would be.

Sorry for the long post, and thanks to anyone who takes the time to respond. This is honestly the first time I’ve opened up about this.

Hi everyone,
I’m a Non-EU Master’s student and currently in my 1st semester at Public University X and planning to transfer to Public University Y for the Winter Semester. I’ve already applied and am waiting for an admission decision, but I’m a bit confused about the administrative process.

1. Should I contact the International Office(s) now, or wait until I receive an admission letter from University Y?

2. If University Y requires proof of exmatriculation from University X before enrollment, can I request exmatriculation with a future effective date (e.g., September 30) so I don’t lose my student status before the new semester begins?

3. Which Ausländerbehörde should I inform about the university change-the one in my current city or the one in the city where University Y is located? At what stage should I notify them?

4. My visa is valid until March 2027. After moving to the new city, do I need to apply for a residence permit immediately, or can I wait until a few months before it expires and apply around Dec-Jan?

Hi everyone,
I’m a Non-EU Master’s student and currently in my 1st semester at Public University X and planning to transfer to Public University Y for the Winter Semester. I’ve already applied and am waiting for an admission decision, but I’m a bit confused about the administrative process.

1. Should I contact the International Office(s) now, or wait until I receive an admission letter from University Y?

2. If University Y requires proof of exmatriculation from University X before enrollment, can I request exmatriculation with a future effective date (e.g., September 30) so I don’t lose my student status before the new semester begins?

3. Which Ausländerbehörde should I inform about the university change-the one in my current city or the one in the city where University Y is located? At what stage should I notify them?

4. My visa is valid until March 2027. After moving to the new city, do I need to apply for a residence permit immediately, or can I wait until a few months before it expires and apply around Dec-Jan?

Hi everyone,
I’m a Non-EU Master’s student and currently in my 1st semester at Public University X and planning to transfer to Public University Y for the Winter Semester. I’ve already applied and am waiting for an admission decision, but I’m a bit confused about the administrative process.

1. Should I contact the International Office(s) now, or wait until I receive an admission letter from University Y?

2. If University Y requires proof of exmatriculation from University X before enrollment, can I request exmatriculation with a future effective date (e.g., September 30) so I don’t lose my student status before the new semester begins?

3. Which Ausländerbehörde should I inform about the university change—the one in my current city or the one in the city where University Y is located? At what stage should I notify them?

4. My visa is valid until March 2027. After moving to the new city, do I need to apply for a residence permit immediately, or can I wait until a few months before it expires and apply around Dec-Jan?

Hey everyone, looking for some advice from people who’ve been through something similar.

I’m currently in my first year of MSc ICT (Embedded Systems specialization) at FAU Erlangen. I’m finding the program quite broad and heavily math-focused, and struggling to find my direction. I have a bachelor’s background in ECE from India and want something more hands-on and focused completely towards Embedded.

I have a few questions:

1. University ranking and switching
FAU Erlangen is a well ranked research university (Universität) while TU Chemnitz is smaller. Does switching from a higher ranked university to a lower ranked one hurt your career prospects in Germany, especially in engineering? Do German employers care about university prestige or is the degree title and skills what matters most?

2.Working student and odd jobs
How is the situation for international students looking for part-time work, working student positions, or odd jobs (warehouses, logistics, retail etc.) in Chemnitz ? Is there decent availability compared to bigger cities like Nuremberg? And how much German is realistically required for these kinds of jobs — would A2/B1 level be enough or do most employers expect higher?

3. Visa challenges
Has anyone switched Master’s programs as a non-EU international student in Germany? Did you face any issues with your student visa? Do you need to apply for a new residence permit when switching universities, or just notify the Ausländerbehörde?

4. Transcript strategy
Should I sit my current FAU exams before applying to the new program, or is it better to apply with a clean/empty transcript? Would having failed or low grades on my FAU transcript hurt my application to the new university or concern the Ausländerbehörde?

Any advice from people who’ve made similar switches or are currently studying and working in the Chemnitz/Zwickau area would be really appreciated. Thanks!