ScholarGate
A B R O A D
Back to all student stories
Germany & DAAD•5 min read•September 2026

Zero Tuition in Germany: Navigating TU Munich & Winning the DAAD Scholarship from BRACU

Private university graduates in Bangladesh often worry German universities won't accept their degrees. Here is how I handled credit matching and published my first review paper.

SS
Written by Sadman Sakib
BRAC University • Now: MSc Student at Technical University of Munich (TUM), Germany
Admit: MSc in Biomedical Engineering • TU Munich (TUM)
Scholarship: DAAD Study Scholarship (€934/month living stipend + zero tuition + German health insurance)
Key Takeaways for Bangladeshi Students:
  • German universities have strict credit alignment rules (ECTS). Doing a syllabus audit before applying is essential.
  • DAAD requires a concrete developmental narrative connecting your degree to Bangladesh's future healthcare challenges.
  • Graduating from a private university in Bangladesh is not a barrier if your course descriptions match the German Rectorate database.

The private university stigma

Whenever I discussed studying in Germany with seniors, I was told the same discouraging thing: 'German public universities only prefer students from BUET or Dhaka University. As a BRAC University graduate, you will get rejected during credit evaluation.' Germany was my dream because of its tuition-free policy and world-class biotechnology labs, but I was terrified of wasting application fees on automatic rejections.

Doing the mechanical credit matching

When I met the ScholarGate team in Dhaka, they didn't rely on guesswork. They pulled up TU Munich's official curriculum handbook and did a side-by-side credit equivalence check against my BRACU syllabus. We discovered that while my molecular biology credits were strong, I was slightly low on quantitative biostatistics credits. They guided me to take two verified accredited online modules to pre-emptively fill the requirement.

Authoring a review paper on cancer diagnostics

To stand out for the DAAD scholarship, good grades alone aren't enough. My ScholarGate mentor—a biomedical researcher—guided me through authoring a review paper on microfluidic acoustic sorting for circulating tumor cells. Writing that paper gave me deep familiarity with the exact diagnostic tools used in German research institutes. In my DAAD interview, I spoke knowledgeably about how these microfluidic sensors could be manufactured at low cost for rural clinics in Bangladesh.

“In my DAAD interview, they didn't ask me about grades. They grilled me on my microfluidic review paper. Because I had actually written and researched it, I could answer every question with total confidence.”

Life in Munich today

Today, I am studying at TU Munich, one of the top 30 universities in the world. Germany charges €0 tuition, and my DAAD scholarship covers €934 every month for rent, food, and student travel. To any student at BRAC, NSU, or other universities in Bangladesh wondering if you can make it to top European universities: yes, you absolutely can. Just don't apply blindly—get your credits mapped and publish research that speaks for you.

Have a similar background or low CGPA concern?

You don't have to figure this out alone. You can visit our student advisory center in Dhanmondi, Dhaka, or connect with our mentors directly on WhatsApp to evaluate your academic options.

Ask a Mentor on WhatsAppBook Free Profile Review