Students of the MA programme (majoring in Sociology) have the opportunity to apply for a double-degree master's programme starting in the corresponding winter semester. The programme is run by the Sociology Department of the Institute for East European Studies (OEI) together with the Sociology Department of the Higher School of Economics in Moscow (HSE).

Students of the OEI are exempt from any tuition fees payable at the HSE.

A joint selection committee of the two partner universities decides on the admission of applicants to the double-degree master's programme. The application for the double-degree master's programme takes place during the first semester of the master's programme. The application deadline is published on the programme's homepage.

Please contact Dr. Mihai Varga in case of any further questions.  

Starting from 29 December, 2021, international students staying in Russia for more than 90 consecutive days must undergo a medical examination and submit fingerprints and biometric photographs within 90 days upon arrival in Moscow. The total cost to the students of these procedures is 60-74 Euros. If the international student leaves Russia before the expiration of their 90 days stay (for seasonal holidays, for instance) and then comes back for the rest of their stay (for less than 90 days), undergoing this procedure is no longer needed.

 

FAQ and important forms

 

1. What are the documents I should submit for my application to be processed?

2. What accommodation does the university provide?

3. Does the university provide any support with getting a German visa?

4. When is the deadline for submitting all necessary documents?

5. How is the exchange program structured?

6. How many courses should I take in each module?

7. In which courses should I write my term papers?

8. How do I register for courses?

9. Can I do my internship in Berlin?

10. How do I get my FU diploma?

11. Do I get grades for seminars other than those I write the term paper?

12. What are the conditions for passing a course?

13. What do I need for the internship to count?

 

1. What are the documents I should submit for my application to be processed?

1. Confirmation from the Institute of East European Studies.
2. Confirmation of the payment of the university fee (the current amount can be found here: https://www.fu-berlin.de/en/studium/studienorganisation/immatrikulation/rueckmeldung/gebuehren/index.html. When making the payment, please put in the following in the reference field: HSE Moskau/FU, [Your surname]/[Your name]
3. Letter from the state insurance company that you are insured as a student (you can apply for the German state insurance at one of the insurance companies online; for example here: https://www.tk.de/service/form/2033438/mitgliedwerden/mitgliedwerden.form#sDV; or here: https://kundenportal.nordost.aok.de/insurance/en/customer-type. The duration of the insurance should cover the entire semester of study you will be enrolling for. For instance, the period covered by the insurance for the winter semester 2021/2022 was 01.10.2021 - 31.03.2022.
4. A notarized copy of your BA certificate with a certified German translation. If the university can provide a certified copy of your BA certificate in English, then the translation into German is not necessary.
5. A filled-in university application form. It can be downloaded from here: https://www.fu-berlin.de/studium/studienorganisation/immatrikulation/formulare/Antrag_Immatrikulation.pdf
6. If you are already enrolled at another university in Germany, then you will need to provide a proof that you are not enrolled there any longer.

2. What accommodation does the university provide?

The Institute is collaborating with one of the two Berlin “student villages” at Schlachtensee (https://www.studentendorf.berlin/schlachtensee), close to the Free University of Berlin. It is the only place, where we could guarantee you will get a spot. Alternatively, you will have to look for accommodation on your own. At the beginning of the enrolment process, we contact the administration of the of Schlachtensee dormitories and give them the list of the incoming students from HSE, then the administration sends students individual offers. Note that it cannot be guaranteed that you will end up living together with other HSE exchange students, as the number of available spots and accommodation options varies by year.

3. Does the university provide any support with getting a German visa?

Unfortunately, we have no influence on the visa application process. Each student receives an official confirmation from the Institute of East European Studies, which you must present at the consulate and which provides the official ground for you travelling to Berlin.

4. When is the deadline for submitting all necessary documents?

To avoid any unforeseen problems, we expect students to send all the documents to us as scans by the end of August/beginning of September of the respective year. Upon arrival, however, you might have to present a notarized copy of your BA certificate (see above). Whether supplying a paper copy of the BA certificate is necessary will depend on the year.

5. How is the exchange program structured?

There are two study modules that have to be completed by the end of your stay in Berlin: Sozialer Wandel und Gesellschaftsvergleich (Specific Sociologies) and Spezielle Soziologien (Сomparative Approaches to Social Change). Each module includes several seminars that you choose yourself. In order to successfully finish a module, you will need to write a term paper (6,000 words) in one of the seminars you chose for the module. The grade for the term paper will be the grade you will receive for the module as a whole. For other seminars in both modules, you will not need a grade.

6. How many courses should I take in each module?

To successfully complete the exchange program, you will need the total of 30 ECTS, which are structured as follows. 15 ECTS equals three seminars and covers one module, so in one module you will have three seminars. 10 ECTS will be in the second module and will equal to two seminars. 5 ECTS you can get by taking an interdisciplinary course or a language course. So overall, you will end up having six seminars. 

However, if you are doing an internship in Berlin, you will need not the 30 ECTS but the total of 20 of ECTS. In this case, in each of the two modules you will have two courses, which together will add up to four courses—and you will still need two term papers to complete the modules.

7. In which courses should I write my term papers?

In order for the two modules to count, one term paper (6,000 words) should be written in each module. The course, in which you write the term paper is of your choice, however, it must be a sociology course at the Institute of East European Studies!

8. How do I register for courses?

Once you are officially enrolled in the program, you will be able to access your personal account. Using it you are able to log in to the university course registration portal called Campus Management (https://www.ecampus.fu-berlin.de). There you can find courses that are on offer in the two modules Sozialer Wandel und Gesellschaftsvergleich (Specific Sociologies) and Spezielle Soziologien (Сomparative Approaches to Social Change) and register for them. For the courses you would like to take that are formally not part of the two modules, you will have to contact the instructor for the course and ask them whether you could join the course. In order for this course to count, you will need the instructor to sign the following form: https://www.polsoz.fu-berlin.de/studium/downloads/downloads_lehre/2017-02-10-pruef-teilnahmebescheinigung-web.pdf

9. Can I do my internship in Berlin?

Yes. You can find an institution for your internship in Berlin. For the internship to count you need the following documents: filled in internship form (https://www.oei.fu-berlin.de/praktikumsboerse/anforderungen/praktikumsanmeldung/aktualisiertesAnmeldeformular2018.pdf), a statement from the institution that hosted the internship, confirming the total length of the internship being (at least) 280 hours , as well as an internship report from you (a couple of pages).

10. How do I get my FU diploma?

After you get your diploma from the HSE, you need to send us a copy of it along with the following documents: scanned copies of filled-in (and signed by the instructor) registration forms for all the courses, for which you did not register using Campus Management and, in case you did your internship in Berlin, the necessary internship documents (see above). After we have received everything from you, the diploma will be issued. 

11. Do I get grades for seminars other than those I write the term paper?

Other seminars are not graded, it is just pass/fail, so for example, there is a module consisting of three seminars. in two of them you just need to pass, i.e., fulfil the course requirements, but in one of them—and this course must be from our institute!—you write a term paper.

12. What are the conditions for passing a course?

Each professor decides herself, but usually it can be a mixture of short response papers, a presentation and active participation.

13. What do I need for the internship to count?

• Confirmation form from Mihai
• A confirmation from the internship hosting institution that you have completed 280 hours
• A report on two pages