Theater Directing, B.A.
Directing begins with an idea, a theme, a play – means dealing with many questions and areas of theatre and life. This requires experimentation, decisions and mediation: in all its complexity and diversity, a production is ultimately always a team success.
Programme facts
| Degree | Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) |
|---|---|
| Duration | 8 semesters, 240 ECTS |
| Language of instruction | German |
| Required German | B1 |
| Study mode | Full-Time |
| Start | Winter semester |
| Application | Directly to the university, winter semester until 01.04 |
| Admission | Admission restriction (NC): a competition of school grades |
| Tuition fee | €0 per semester for international students |
| Semester contribution | €375.09 per semester |
What the tuition fee consists of
Will I get in
The programme has an admission restriction: the average grade of your certificate, converted to the German scale, decides. The cut-off changes every year — last year's value shows the order of magnitude, not a promise.
How the selection works and how strong the competition is — we go through it against your certificate when we select programmes for you.
Programme selection →About the programme
In the Bachelor's programme we train directors for the theatre. Practical orientation and their own productions are central elements of the training: In the Bachelor's degree programme in Directing, we work closely with the partner theatres of the Hessian Theatre Academy (HTA), whether through job shadowing and assisting or the students' own productions.
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The curriculum also includes joint courses, workshops and projects with the acting department and the master's degree course in theatre and orchestra management at the HfMDK, with the master's degree course in dramaturgy at the Johann Wolfang Goethe University in Frankfurt, the course in stage design/scenic space at the Offenbach University of Art and Design (HfG) and the Institute for Applied Theatre Studies at the Justus Liebig University in Gießen. Additionally, the many theatres in the HTA network are also places of training.
The course takes up current discourses, addresses the future of theatre and integrates contributions from literature and philosophy, from the arts and social sciences. It imparts skills for theoretical-reflexive and artistic-practical work – and creates space for cross-connections: Students of directing at the HfMDK deal with all formats of contemporary theatre, they experiment with new concepts of representation and aesthetics.
What you study
The Bachelor of Arts Directing has a standard period of study of 8 semesters and begins in the winter semester. A total of 240 credit points are acquired. The courses take place in German.
The full curriculum and the programme's parameters are part of programme selection: we compare them with your profile.
Pick programmesCost of study
| Tuition fee of the federal state (Hesse), international students | €0 |
|---|---|
| Semester contribution | €375.09 |
Requirements and application
| Previous education | A school certificate that gives access to university in Germany — directly or after a Studienkolleg. |
|---|---|
| Language | German B1 — confirmed by a certificate when you apply |
| Application | Directly to the university, winter semester until 01.04 |
The procedure and the set of documents depend on your certificate. We check the university's requirements against your documents and give you a list: what to submit, how to certify and translate it, where and when to apply.
Check the requirementsHow to get into this programme
- 1Check your certificate and its recognitionDirect admission, a year at a university at home, or Studienkolleg first — this decides the whole plan.
- 2German up to B1 and a certificateDSH or TestDaF has to be passed before you apply.
- 3Documents and translationsCertified translations of the certificate and transcript, an APS if required. 3–4 weeks.
- 4Application directly to the university until 01.04Send the documents well before the deadline — an incomplete application cannot be completed after it.
- 5Admission, visa, movingPlan 2–3 months for the visa and the blocked account in parallel.
How to apply
You can submit the application yourself or with our help — the university decides on admission in both cases.
Applications go through the university's portal or uni-assist. Typical mistakes:
- ×incorrectly made certified copies and translations
- ×a wrong set of documents
- ×the application submitted the wrong way
- ×errors or gaps in the application form
- ×the application submitted at the wrong time — too early or too late
An incomplete or incorrectly prepared application is excluded from the selection — it can no longer be corrected after the deadline.
StudyInFocus does not represent the university and does not influence the admission decision. We do not sell study places and do not guarantee admission — this is a service for preparing and submitting documents on the applicant's side.
If your level is not enough yet
The two most common stoppers are a language level below the requirement and a certificate without direct admission. Both can be solved, but they take months — plan them now, not after a rejection.
Questions about this programme
How much does the programme cost?
What language level do I need?
When do I need to apply?
Don't postpone the application
The deadline is 01.04.2027 (169 days left). Language, translations and the document check take months, not weeks. In 30 minutes we will build a plan backwards from the deadline and tell you honestly whether you can make it.