00:16It was the first type of business in Germany,
00:17It was an mechanical and technical at all.
00:19Even in 5 years,
00:20There were 2 kinds of business in Hong Kong,
00:21It was also one way to work for several years.
00:24There are also the German domestic problems in China,
00:27Dr. Philip Manthoa,
00:28What is the present scenario for Indian students in Germany?
00:42So, first of all, it's great to be in Andhra Pradesh. It's my first time and my first meeting today was with a group of nurses who are about to go to Germany.
00:52They are taught German so that they get a little, you know, proficiency in Germany and then they go to German hospitals.
01:00And it was a great meeting because you had about 12 nurses and they are a group out of 70 who are really looking forward to going to Germany with their families, with their husbands.
01:11And we had a very nice conversation. I was very impressed with their level of German actually. It was much better than I expected. So that was good.
01:18For students, I think we have 60,000 now, 60,000 Indian students in Germany. That is a growth by 20% compared to 2024.
01:30And I think that shows that Germany as a destination for students, Indian students becomes more and more attractive.
01:39Now, what does it mean? We have universities who are very fond of Indian students. They take Indian applications with pleasure because Indian students have the reputation of being very committed, extremely dedicated and very ambitious.
01:55Also, you know, they want to achieve something. And we are very happy that mostly in STEM, in the STEM areas, they are very, very active.
02:04So basically people come to Germany to study engineering, life science, you know, also computer science.
02:11And so why is it so interesting in Germany? First of course, it's a top notch education.
02:17You get really very, very good value education when you go to Germany. And second, it's for free, basically, you know, costs are very low.
02:25We don't charge for state-run and funded universities. Education is a public good in Germany. So people feel that, you know, you have to offer to everybody good education.
02:39Now, why would you ask would we offer that to Indian students on German taxpayers' money?
02:45Now, the reason for that is that we hope that many of the Indian students will stay for a while in Germany and work.
02:54You can stay after your graduation for 18 months in order to find a job. And once you find a job, basically, it's easy to get a long term permission to stay in Germany.
03:07And we, our statistics say that 60 to 70% of Indian students stay in Germany after their graduation. And that is good for us because we need these young Indians in order to fill the vacancies we have on the job market.
03:24With the United States, America drastically increasing H-1B ways of fees, can Germany be considered the best destination for Indian students and professionals?
03:33So, I would say, you know, we would never say that we are the best destination even though we might think it, but we don't say it.
03:41That modesty will not allow us to say. But I think Germany is a good alternative.
03:47Our immigration legislation is stable, it's steady, our immigration laws are predictable and reliable, and therefore we don't change overnight any, you know, provisions and prerequisites.
04:04So, I think if Indians do feel that Germany is for them a possibility, we are very, we welcome them with open arms.
04:14I have to say that here, but they are modern, they are top notch technology, they are predictable, reliable, and they don't go from full speed to complete break, you know, and that's how our immigration law works, I would say.
04:27So, we are very, you know, when you want to come to Germany, you can rely on our legislation, you can rely on our rules and regulations, they will not change overnight.
04:41So, we see that some agents in India aggressively recruit students for Germany.
04:48Now, these agents don't work for German universities, they work for universities that come from other countries and have set up shop in Germany.
04:57And these universities, we feel, do not fulfill always the requirements of a university.
05:05They are expensive because they are private schools, you have to pay for them, and you don't get a German degree once you finish.
05:12And many people don't know that, you know, they basically walk in a trap, I would say, put by these agents.
05:23And therefore, my message is, if you go through an agent, never trust this agent, you know, check in parallel whether this agent makes the right offer to you.
05:34So, I am very hesitant to, in a way, to recommend agents.
05:41But I know that very many Indians work with agents, so my message would be, if you work with an agent, don't trust the agents, just check on whether he gives you the best of all offer.
05:51There are agents who have only one offer, you know, one university. Of course, they get paid by the university or by this institution.
05:58And that's not always the best for the client.
06:02There is a facility here that's called the German Academic Exchange Service.
06:07It's the biggest office outside Germany, here in India.
06:10They have a very good website and they have also ways and means to advise students if they want to.
06:17So, I would always direct any students to this DAAD German Academic Exchange Service website in order to double check whether the agent is really offering the right choice.
06:30What are the facilities and support does your government provide for the Indian students aspiring to study in Germany?
06:35Are you planning to increase the number of visas in future?
06:38No, we don't put limits. The limits is basically how many are accepted by German universities.
06:45If German universities accept application by Indian students, we will issue the visa.
06:50If there is no fraud involved, the visa application is complete.
06:57But I said 25% of visas are rejected in the context of these universities whom we don't consider to be really full-fledged German universities.
07:09In our regular universities, we only reject visa if the application is not complete.
07:17And if we feel that, you know, the application is complete and there is no fraud involved, there is no problem to issue the visa.
07:24So, the 60,000 are mostly with very good universities, you know, that's why we are so happy about them.
07:31Could you highlight the prospects for Indian students mainly in STEM fields, research institutions and emerging areas like AI, green technology and renewable energy?
07:41Yeah, that's very good. This is something where we feel Indian students can be extremely helpful, can be contributing to what we have to offer academically in research institutions.
07:53Most Indian students go for this, you know, subjects and that's what we are very happy with.
08:00After completing graduation in Germany, students are allowed 18 months to look for the jobs. Is there any plan to extend this period?
08:08No, no, no. 18 months after graduation. If you graduate and you can stay for 18 months for looking for a job.
08:17So, German immigration laws are particularly liberal right now. We have a very liberal immigration law.
08:23One major challenge for Indians planning to study or work in German is the language barrier. What initiatives are being taken to help overcome this issue?
08:32So, I would say that, you know, most students go for master classes and these master classes are taught in English. So, that's easy. But if you intend to stay in Germany, if you want a job in Germany, I would recommend to learn German.
08:46Now, every university is offering German classes. Many students, you know the Indian students, they are so focused on their studies, they say, if we don't need to learn German, I'd rather concentrate on my subjects and do a good mark.
09:00I would say that the universities should encourage more Indian students to learn German. I think when you have an IT degree and you join, let's say, a big IT company like SAP or something in Germany, German is not needed.
09:15But if you live in Germany for a while, if you want to open up to German culture, if you want to integrate fully, if your kids go to German school, then German as a language is needed.
09:27Now, let me tell you one thing. You are Telugu speakers, you speak English, you speak a little Hindi also. So, Indians are multilingual like no other country.
09:37And I will tell you that even Germany is, German is as a language not completely easy, but you'll see Indians have much more, you know, affinity to learning these languages than others.
09:50So, I'm not so worried. When I saw these nurses this morning, you know, they have learned German since three, four months only. Their level was quite good.
09:58So, we will try to increase the level of German teaching in India. We have about a little more than two lakh German learners in India.
10:08We, I think, the need is bigger. So, we need more German teachers. We need more institutions to teach German. And we will slowly increase, you know, we have to do it thoroughly.
10:18You can't just do that overnight. You have to train people. We will slowly increase the number of German teachers here in India so that, you know, Indians can start learning Germany at home.
10:30You once mentioned that Germany considered India a key partner in bridging the skilled workforce gap in IT, management and science and technology sectors.
10:39The Skilled Immigration Act supports the goal with additional steps are being taken to further encouraging the collaboration.
10:45Well, we now try to work together with institutions we know, like, for example, in Telangana said, you have TomCom. It's a state institution that is very strong in finding skilled labor for Germany.
11:01It's a very good operation. We are happy to work with them. In other states, there are other institutions. So, I think it is important to find a network of reliable and trustworthy institutions here.
11:14in India to facilitate this smooth transition towards STEM is very important.
11:21Nurses and caregiving is a big area. But also in smaller areas, we are looking for apprentices for crafts shops.
11:30So, also, you know, all sorts of work. But I would say the big two areas are STEM engineering and nursing and caregiving.
11:39We are, there are a lot of partnerships between German universities and Indian universities and the number will certainly grow in the coming year.
11:48What is the current status of Germany? 1.3 billion dollar investment proposals in India. Invest sectors are these investments being made?
11:56So, we are, we are having, we are witnessing a clear shift towards India from the German business. We feel more and more Germans are, you know, convinced by the Indian model.
12:08Here in Andhra, it's quite amazing to see what the government of the state does and how, you know, this coastal state is developed in which speed is developed.
12:18So, that's attractive for many German companies. So, I see a good future for the German business, even though German business relations.
12:26That, by the way, is also valid for the other way. There are a lot and more and more Indian companies investing in Germany and we are, we are happy about it.
12:33Andhra Pradesh is building a greenfield capital city at Amaravati and plans to establish advanced technology hubs like Quantum Valley.
12:40Will Germany be a partner in this growth sector?
12:43So, we talked to the Chief Minister today. It was a very, very good conversation. I really appreciated his vision and he, you know, he shared his ideas on, on all the things you just mentioned.
12:54And we find that very interesting and we will work with our Chamber of Commerce. Maybe we can play a role. Thank you.
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