TestAS for Medicine in Germany: Which Universities Ask for It and What Score You Need

If you are a non-EU applicant and want to study medicine in Germany, you will hear about TestAS early. Some people tell you it is required everywhere. Others say it does not matter. Both are wrong, and the difference matters because medicine is one of the most competitive programmes in the country.

This guide shows how real German medical faculties use TestAS, using their own published rules, which module you need, what score is competitive and how to time the test around your application.

First: which applicant group are you in?

German universities sort medicine applicants into groups, and TestAS only plays a role in one of them.

• Germans, EU citizens and applicants treated like them apply through hochschulstart.de. For this group, the relevant aptitude test is the TMS, not TestAS.
• Non-EU applicants with a foreign school certificate usually apply directly to the university or through uni-assist. They compete for a separate, small quota of places for international applicants. At the University of Hamburg, for example, that quota is 5 percent.

TestAS is built for the second group. If you are not sure which group you belong to, check the university's admission page before you plan any test.

How three universities actually use TestAS

There is no single German rule. Here are three real models, taken from the universities' own pages.

University of Cologne: required, with a published minimum

Cologne is the clearest example. For human medicine, dentistry and neuroscience:

• A valid digital TestAS is required. Applications are only possible with a TestAS certificate, and you upload it to uni-assist with your application.
• The subject module must be Medicine.
• The minimum is a percentile rank of 85, calculated as the average of the Core Module and the Medicine module. Cologne states clearly that reaching the minimum does not guarantee a place. Applicants above it then go through the university's selection.
• All three programmes start with "Studienstart International Medizin", a preparatory semester with subject courses, subject-specific German and study skills. After it you move into the second semester without applying again.
• German must be very good: the minimum for the application is DSH-2, and Cologne lists equivalents such as TestDaF with TDN 4 in all parts, telc C1 Hochschule and Goethe C1.

University of Göttingen: required, three modules accepted

Göttingen makes TestAS a mandatory part of the application for the first semester of human medicine and dentistry (state examination). It accepts the Core Module plus one of three subject modules: Life Sciences, Medicine, or Mathematics, Computer Science and Natural Sciences. Other modules are not accepted. Results can be from the paper or digital test, in German or English. Göttingen does not publish a minimum score.

University of Hamburg: voluntary, for bonus points

Hamburg shows the third model. Its TestAS page says taking the test is voluntary. Non-EU applicants to undergraduate programmes can earn up to 6 bonus points: up to 3 for the Core Module and up to 3 for a matching subject module, starting from a standard score of 106. The page was last updated in 2020, so confirm the current rules with the university.

What these models mean for you

Most medicine applicants apply to several universities. Plan for the strictest rule on your list:

1. Take the Medicine module unless every university on your list accepts another one. It is the module Cologne requires and one of those Göttingen accepts.
2. Aim well above the 85th percentile if Cologne or similar programmes are on your list. A percentile rank compares you with other test takers: 85 means you scored higher than 85 percent of them. With many strong applicants for few places, the minimum is rarely enough.
3. Treat your Core Module as half your result. Cologne averages the two modules, so a weak Core Module pulls down a strong Medicine score. Read how the Core Module is scored.

What is in the Medicine module

According to testas.de, the digital subject module takes 90 minutes, with 10 to 15 testlets of 4 to 8 questions each. The Medicine module covers:

• Anatomy
• Physiology
• Biology
• (Bio)chemistry
• Psychology and sociology for physicians
• Physics

testas.de says medical terminology appears in the texts but technical terms are not assumed, and it expects basics of biology, (bio)chemistry and physics. In practice, each testlet gives you a text with data, such as a study table or a lab value, and asks what follows from it.

Our Medicine module guide walks through every topic with a complete sample testlet, and each topic has its own practice page, for example physiology and psychology and sociology for physicians.

When to take TestAS for medicine

Work backwards from your application deadline.

• Find the deadline. Cologne, for example, needs applications at uni-assist by 15 January for the summer semester and 15 July for the winter semester.
• Allow about three weeks for results. testas.de gives about three weeks for the digital test.
• Register in time. Registration for the digital TestAS closes about a week before the test date.
• Leave room for a second attempt. There is no limit on retakes, and you choose which certificate to submit. If your first score lands below your target, a test date that still allows a retake before the deadline is worth a lot. See retaking TestAS.

Upcoming dates are on our TestAS dates page, read live from the official calendar.

A realistic plan

1. List every university you will apply to and note: is TestAS required, which module, any published minimum, and the deadline.
2. Choose a test date at least two months before your earliest deadline.
3. Prepare both modules. If your school science is solid, six focused weeks of about an hour a day is a realistic plan, with the last week for full timed mocks.
4. Work on your German in parallel. For medicine it decides as much as TestAS does.

The short version

TestAS is not required for medicine everywhere, but where it is, it decides who gets through the first filter. Take the digital Medicine module, prepare the Core Module just as seriously, and aim clearly above the 85th percentile. Then check each university's own page, because they are the only binding source.

You can start today: try a free Medicine practice testlet, no signup needed.

Sources: University of Hamburg, selection via hochschulstart and quotas, University of Cologne, non-EU applicants (medicine), University of Göttingen, TestAS for medicine and dentistry, University of Hamburg, TestAS, Structure of the digital TestAS, TestAS FAQ registration, TestAS dates and registration.