Apply with LERNEN26 until June 30th & secure €1,444 discount + iPad.
You are looking for help deciding on the right distance learning programme? You’ve come to the right place! On this page, you learn about some facts and figures concerning our distance learning programme and the benefits and options we offer. On top of that, we give you detailed advice on choosing your study programme.
Counting more than 85.000 students, IU International University of Applied Sciences (IU) is now the largest private institution of its kind in Germany. Growth is part of our mission: We want everyone to access education and enable you to follow your path – no matter who or where you are in life.
Diversity is key: our student body is proof of that.
68.2% come from a non-academic household
28.5% are looking after a child under 18
13.7% have a migratory background
10.3% do not have a high school diploma
6.7% are facing health impairments
*Data from the first semester survey on distance learning (March 2021)
The most popular fields of study with our students are health & social affairs, education & psychology as well as economics & management.
30.6% Health & Social Affairs
23.5% Pedagogy & Psychology
16.9% Management & Economics
*Data from the first semester survey on distance learning (March 2021)
Studying online has many advantages that allow you to combine it with your job, family or other commitments.
You decide when you want to start your online study programme – at any time, without annoying enrolment deadlines and waiting times.
Today more than ever, we want to remain flexible. That's why your study programme is online – from the initial application, to study scripts, to exams.
Your distance learning not only offers you personal fulfillment, you also benefit from more leadership responsibility and a higher salary.
You can try out your study programme for four weeks – no commitment. The fees for this period only apply if you decide to continue your studies with us.
Simply register online for your desired programme.
There is definitely no lack of versatility in German higher education: You are spoilt for choice between so many study programmes and models. To give you an overview of your options, there are various information services available.
Study selection tests are especially useful at the beginning of your orientation phase. They give you an initial tendency as to which field of study matches your interests and goals. You can find helpful study selection tests here:
Federal Employment Agency (BfA): https://www.arbeitsagentur.de/bildung/welche-ausbildung-welches-studium-passt
Study Interest Test (SIT): https://www.hochschulkompass.de/studium-interessentest.html
OSA portal: https://www.osa-portal.de/
Our student advisory service will be happy to support you in your choice of study programme at any time – by phone, by e-mail or in our live chat via WhatsApp. We are here to help you with these and other topics:
We will help you choose the right study programme and show you possible subject combinations.
We will inform you about our different study and time models.
We will advise you on your financing options.
Do you need help with your decision? Your personal study advisor is happy to help you!
When looking for the right study programme, it is important that you consider more than just your career goals. Your personal interests, characteristics and strengths should play at least as big a role in your decision. Here, you can find out what factors make up your personality that are important for choosing a study programme.
Your personal strengths determine which tasks you can easily access and quickly develop solutions for. They are made up of innate talents and skills learned over the course of your life. If, for example, you have always had an affinity for numbers but not much pleasure in reading and formulating creative language, then a degree in Business Administration is far more suitable for you than a degree in linguistics and literature.
While skills are about hard skills, soft skills are about character traits. They determine how you behave in certain situations and react to your social environment. Therefore, they are also extremely relevant for your choice of study and career. Soft skills are divided into different competencies:
Personal competence concerns how you deal with yourself, for example, through self-confidence, self-reflection and self-discipline.
Social competence describes how you interact with other people. It determines, for example, how well you can put yourself in the position of your fellow human beings, whether you are a team player who is willing to compromise or how you react to personal conflicts.
Finally, there is methodological competence, which is closely linked to the other two areas of competence. It is responsible for the way you work and for your problem-solving strategies. This competence concerns, for example, your time management, skills to cope with stress or to motivate employees, but also presentations in front of an audience or dealing with new media.
Studying and working will be easier for you if you deal with content that makes you curious and moves you. So you are not working exclusively to earn money, but also to improve your knowledge and skills within your field of interest. Sometimes, it is not so easy to become aware of one's own interests. You can explore your interests by consciously asking yourself questions like: What could I talk about for hours? Why do I enjoy my hobbies? Where would I volunteer? With such episodes of self-exploration, you get to know yourself better and find out what really interests you.
Even if you don't have a concrete career aspiration yet, you may already have some ideas about the working conditions of your future job. These preferences are important because they define your future field of activity more precisely. For example, do you want to be out in nature or in the city, do you want to travel a lot or do you value a fixed location, do you want to work with other people or would you rather do your tasks alone? A degree opens up or facilitates your path to certain professional fields. Therefore, it makes sense to choose a study programme that is geared towards professions with the working conditions you want.
Many different personality categorisations exist. For vocational orientation and occupational psychology, above all the Interest model by John L. Holland has proven to be useful. It distinguishes between six interest orientations based on personality, which can be used to determine aptitude for specific occupational fields.
These individuals focus on interpersonal relationships and are particularly helpful, cooperative and empathetic. They seek close social contact and want to support other people. Study programmes from our areas Health & Social Services and Education & Psychology would potentially be a good option here.
This group includes people interested in cultural activities and aesthetics. They tend to avoid structured tasks and prefer to work independently and detached from firmly defined guidelines. They are particularly interested in expressing their creativity and strive to create their own aesthetic works. That’s why they often decide on artistic courses of study from the field of Design & Media.
These include competitive, ambitious and success-oriented people. They are motivated by competitive situations and like to take the lead. It is their job to coordinate other people and supervise their activities. Equally, they enjoy presentation and persuasion, for example, in attracting new clientele. They prefer study programmes from our fields of Business & Management and Marketing & Communication.
People of this type are practical. They enjoy physical activities that require strength, manual dexterity and coordination. They prefer concrete tasks and visible results instead of abstract and theoretical thought constructs. The functioning, construction and maintenance of technical (and also digitally supported) systems are at the centre of their attention. For this reason, they often choose their course of study and later profession from the diverse range of fields available in IT & Technology.
People with this field of interest favour carefully structured tasks. They have an eye for detail and organise themselves and their field of activity thoughtfully. Since they want routine, regulated and exact working methods, they take on tasks such as drawing up and checking contracts, maintaining data or processing business figures. Therefore, they choose study programmes from the field of Economics & Management.
Information on study content & electives
Information on career prospects
Information on financing options
