Is it possible to live in Germany with English only?
For an English-taught degree in a large city: yes, you can get by for a while. For everything around the degree: only partly.
Where English usually works:
- University (international offices, English-taught programmes, many student jobs in IT or research).
- Big-city daily life: shops, cafés, public transport apps, international student housing.
Where German is usually needed:
- Public offices: Bürgeramt (Anmeldung), Ausländerbehörde (residence permit), tax office. Forms and letters are in German and staff are not required to speak English.
- Housing: most landlords, rental contracts and house rules are in German.
- Health care: many doctors speak some English, but receptionists, pharmacies and hospital paperwork are mostly German.
- Contracts (phone, internet, insurance, gym): German, with German cancellation rules.
- Part-time jobs outside IT/academia and most internships.
Realistic plan: start with A2–B1 German before or during your first year. It makes offices, housing and jobs much easier and is required anyway for many residence-permit options after graduation.
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