Prepare&Start – Welcome&Stay@THM

At a glance

For: international prospective and first-year students

Topics: Study orientation, integration, networking, starting university, digitalization

Location: Technische Hochschule Mittelhessen (THM)

Structured study orientation, preparation and support

Choosing the right course of study and finding your way around a university is no easy task – especially for international students. Is my German good enough to study my desired subject? Where can I improve my language skills? And what is it like to study in Germany? Prepare&Start@THM helps with all these questions. The program provides prospective international students not only with support, guidance, and thorough preparation, but also with personalized mentoring: Student mentors answer questions, share insights into their daily lives, give tours of the university, and ensure a particularly warm welcome.

Arriving safely on campus

The goal of Prepare&Start@THM is broad integration into the university's academic system. International prospective students are not left to their own devices when choosing a course of study, but receive targeted guidance. Their study choice is proactively supported. Study orientation programs (Pre-Study) and various support services for starting university (e.g., mentoring, German as a Foreign Language) ensure a successful start to their studies and a quick transition into their new daily routine.

In the future, prospective students won't even need to be physically present to benefit from the program: Pre-Study is developing a blended learning format that, based on an online learning platform, promotes the acquisition of study-related digital skills even before the start of studies. A key component of the program is the personal mentoring: In addition to facilitating the exchange of experiences and networking among students and with existing student organizations, the mentors also ensure that international students quickly find their way around and settle in on campus.

To develop individual skills and abilities, various workshops and lectures are offered – for example, on learning techniques, mental health, anti-discrimination, or financing studies. The choice of internships and all questions relating to starting a career are also addressed.