How to apply for a language course - 3 steps
The Language Learning Center offers a wide range of courses in the following languages: Chinese, English, French, German as a Foreign Language, German Sign Language, Italian, Swedish and Spanish. All language modules and workshops are designed in accordance with the CEFR (Common European Framework of Reference for Languages).
Please note the following three steps when registering for our language courses.
Step 1: Check participation requirements
Conditions for participation
Placement tests and language courses are open to officially enrolled students and exchange students of TH Köln. Cross-registered students, auditing students and staff of TH Köln may not apply for a course place. Faculty specific language modules are limited to students of the respective faculties.
Step 2: Take placement test or provide proof of language skills
Placement Tests
Taking the placement test is a prerequisite for participating in courses at the Language Learning Center. Placement tests are offered at the beginning of each semester.
You do not have to take a placement test if you
- want to register for one of our courses A1.1 Chinese, A1 German as a Foreign Language, A1.1 German Sign Language, A1 French, A1 Italian, A1 Swedish or A1 Spanish and have no prior knowledge of these languages.
- have done a placement test at the Language Learning Center in the preceding semester.
- have successfully completed a language course at the Language Learning Center within the past two years.
- can submit a certificate as proof that you have passed a language examination on a specified CEFR-level within the past two years. A scan of this certificate has to be sent to sprachlernzentrum@th-koeln.de before the date of the first placement test. Please note that school-leaving certificates / high school diplomas such as the German ‘Abitur’ or ‘Fachabitur’ cannot be accepted as certification of a language level.
Step 3: Register for a language course
Dates - Winter Semester 2024/25
Placement Test Registration: Sep 9-29, 2024
Placement Tests: Sep 16 - Oct 3, 2024
Online Course Registration: Sep 20 - Oct 7, 2024
Course Duration: Oct 14, 2024 - Feb 7, 2025
Subject to change.
Dates - Summer Semester 2025
Placement Test Registration: Mar 4-23, 2025
Placement Tests: Mar 10-27, 2025
Online Course Registration: Mar 14-31, 2025
Course Duration: Apr 7 - Jul 18, 2025
Subject to change.
Language Courses for Students
Registering for a language course is only possible online during the registration period. In order to sign up, please choose your desired course and fill in the online registration form. You may only register for those language modules that you were assigned to based on your placement test result.
In order to open the registration form you will have to login using your valid campusID. If you have not received your campusID yet, please wait until you have received the email with your personal account data. If have not yet received your campusID one week before the end of the registration deadline, please contact us by e-mail, stating the course code and the title of your desired course or workshop. In this case we will send you a link so that you can register as a guest.
The number of places in the courses and workshops offered by the Language Learning Center is limited. The number of participants admitted to a particular course or workshop can be found on the course description. After the deadline for registration has expired, we will inform you via email if you have been assigned a place in the course.
Should there be more registrations than course places, places will first be allocated to students who have been on the waiting list for a course or a workshop in the respective language in the past. The remaining course places will then be awarded in a lottery procedure.
There is no legal claim to admission even if attending courses at the Language Learning Center should be mandatory in a certain degree program.