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Berlin named Germany's best city for students

The Local Germany
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Berlin named Germany's best city for students
Two students sit beneath the statue of Alexander von Humboldt outside the Humboldt University on Unter den Linden. Photo: DPA

Berlin has been named the best city in Germany for students in 2016, leaping up a global ranking in the last 12 months to overtake Munich.

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The German capital placed 9th on the QS Best Student cities 2016 ranking published on Tuesday, behind a slew of world cities including Paris, Tokyo, London and Hong Kong.

Analysts looked at five categories to come up with an overall score for each of the 75 cities in the table: university rankings, student population and diversity, desirability and safety, availability of jobs after graduation, and affordability.

"Germany's capital city can stake a credible claim to being one of the coolest cities in the world," the authors wrote, calling it a "major centre of design, fashion, music and art to rival even New York or London".

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They were particularly impressed by Germany's free access to undergraduate education – even for international students.

The capital's offering of many courses in English also came in for praise, as did its low cost of living, "liberal atmosphere" and "happening party and music scene".

As for studying, Berlin also boasts some of the best universities in the world – although QS' opinion was less generous than October's Times Higher Education (THE) rankings, which put the Humboldt University and Free University at 49th and 72nd place worldwide respectively.

Munich trails behind

Berlin leapt seven places up the list to claim its place in the top 10, leapfrogging Munich – the only other German city in the top 75, climbing from 14th to 11th place.

While the QS authors loved the Bavarian capital's "affluence and vibrancy" – as well as its status as the "beer capital of the world" and high quality of life – they do point to the higher costs of living than Berlin.

Nevertheless, with excellent universities in the shape of the Ludwig-Maximilian University and the Technical University – at 29th and 53rd in this year's THE global ranking – spending some of your undergraduate years down south is likely to be more than worth it.

SEE ALSO: Studying in Germany left me down in the dumps

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