Notes and information: First state examination - oral and written examination in German

The legal framework for the examinations is set out in the Hessian Teacher Training Act (HLbG) and the corresponding Ordinance on the Implementation of the Hessian Teacher Training Act (HLbGDV) and can be obtained from the Hessian Teachers' Academy (Kassel Examination Office). The legal texts can be found in the list of links on this page.

It is best to start planning your oral or written German exam one year before the planned examination campaign.
Ask authorized examiners (see list of links above) whether they will take your oral or written exam. It is useful and helpful to attend courses with the people you would like to be examined by; ideally, you will have attended at least one of their courses.
Please also check the examiners' homepages for any special registration modalities.

For the written exam, you can choose between the areas of language and literature; accordingly, only one examiner is required.
For the oral examination in German, you will need two examiners: one for the literature section and one for the language section.
The didactic part of the L2 and L3 examinations is examined by all authorized examiners. For L1, one of the two examiners should come from the field of didactics.

First ask one of the authorized examiners, if the request is rejected, ask another one. There is no right to a free choice of examiners - but there is no reason to worry: The Institute of German Studies has enough examiners to ensure that every exam is taken within the scheduled time period.

Obtain a signature from the person examining you for the "examiner sheet" from the Teachers' Academy. Since Corona times, their confirmation (to be requested by you) by e-mail, stating the examination period and type of examination, is sufficient as an alternative.

For L1 students: If you do not receive positive feedback in the didactics area, please put yourself on the waiting list. You can find further information on this under "Find out more".

The written examination (Klausur) as part of the first state examination for the subject German can be taken either in the area of literature or in the area of language in the form of an individual examination. You will therefore only be tested on one of the two areas in the written examination. The written examination for the L1, L2 and L3 teaching qualifications has the following subject and thematic structure:
Three topics on literature or language (at least one of which is proportionately related to subject didactics and at least one subject-related topic) are submitted. One of the three topics submitted will be deleted by the Teachers' Academy. Only one of the remaining two topics must then be completed.

The oral examination as part of the first state examination for the subject German is taken in the area of literature as well as in the area of language. The oral examination has the following subject and thematic structure:
L1 (duration: 20 minutes): literary studies (one or two topics) + language didactics (one or two topics) OR: literary didactics (one or two topics) + linguistics (one or two topics).
L2 (duration: 1 h): four topics (two literary studies, two linguistics) - at least one of the four topics must be didactically related.
L3 (duration: 1 h): six topics (three literary studies, three linguistics) - at least one of the six topics must be didactically related.
The exam topics are determined in close consultation between the examiners and you.