Choose the Best Universities in the UK and Germany Using ChatGPT

Is there something left out of free market higher education?

Choosing the right university is a key decision in many life journeys. Increasing numbers of UK students are choosing higher education in Germany.

UK Students in Tertiary Education in Germany (with a 2nd order polynomial trendline)

With changing course fees, qualifications, and job markets, it’s crucial to empower students to seek up-to-date information themselves. This article explores how AI, like ChatGPT, can assist you in making informed decisions about studying in the UK or Germany or beyond.

Watch This DW Video First

Deutsche Welle is Germany’s international broadcaster, funded by the German federal tax budget. Studying in Germany: What international students should know will pique your interest in a German university education. No tuition fees for UK students — sounds good. BUT read the comments under the video!!!

A Dozen Example Prompts to Ask ChatGPT

Sometimes AI presents invented information as facts. You need to use an internet-enabled AI chatbot, such as ChatGPT-4 with the WebChatGPT Chrome browser extension, and check the sources of information it provides.

Getting the most out of AI chatbots means learning to write better prompts by critically reviewing AI responses and refining the questions you ask.

Image by Joe from Pixabay

A journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step. Here are a dozen steps, example prompts for you to submit to ChatGPT, Google Bard, Perplexity, Claud etc. comparing the responses you receive from each:

1. Throughout this dialogue, please adopt the role of a Person-Centred career counsellor with twenty years’ experience of research and teaching in social science. Please provide drop out rates for international students studying undergraduate degrees in Germany, with citation information for each data source.
2. Throughout this dialogue, please adopt the role of a Person-Centred career counsellor with twenty years’ experience of research and teaching in social science. Please outline the pros and cons of studying for a degree at a university in the UK and in Germany.
3. Please write a table comparing for the UK and Germany, considerations and parameters that a UK 6th Former needs to consider when choosing between studying for a degree in the UK and in Germany.
4. Please provide evidence to establish whether it is practical for a non-German speaking UK 6th Former to find and join English language medium degree programmes at German universities.
5. A 6th former and their parents and advisers are choosing the 6th former’s university education. a) What are the ten most valuable questions they can ask to improve this choice if they think about themselves as consumers in a free market economy, and b) What are the ten most valuable questions they can ask to improve this choice if they think about themselves as citizens in a social market economy?
6. Please outline differences between UK and German national socioeconomic policy that account for differences in tuition fees for international undergraduate students in the UK and Germany.
7. In which specific fields is German university education highly ranked and recognised?
8. To enter university education in Germany, will UK 6th Formers need to provide evidence of English language proficiency such as IELTS or TOEFL?
9. Please outline a practical guide for a UK 6th Former to financing higher education in a German university. Please include an estimate of costs for each year of study.
10. In a typical German university town, in which occupations can an English-speaking undergraduate realistically find work? How much can that student expect to earn in 120 days of work in such occupations?
11. Please write a step-by-step guide, including a timeline, for a UK 6th Former researching, selecting and applying to study a degree programme at a university in Germany. Please outline the costs associated with each step in that process.
12. A UK 6th former might visit the German town in which they plan to study, staying in a backpacker hostel. What other strategies might the 6th former use to improve their lived experience of the transition to university education in Germany?
13. Please outline methods that I can use to examine the reliability and biases in sources of information about choosing a higher education.
14. Please provide a referenced outline account of countries in which UK citizens can obtain English language medium undergraduate higher education that delivers quality and benefits similar to UK undergraduate education but with significantly lower costs.

When you write better prompts, share them in the comments. And follow me to read more about improving your higher education choice!