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offer full-time, evening, and correspondence courses, and have curriculums ranging from 1 to 4 years' duration. Each Fachschule teaches one basic subject, ranging from technical fields such as machine construction to social subjects such as finance.

At the apex of the educational system stand the 54 universities and institutions of higher education. The latter include technical, agricultural, art, and pedagogical colleges. There are several channels leading to enrollment in these institutions. In addition to accepting candidates from the extended polytechnical schools, universities are open to persons who pass special entrance examinations offered by the Berufsschulen and Fachschulen. Workers may also attend special part-time or evening courses, or take correspondence courses, which permit them to take special entrance examinations.

2. University reform

In 1967, after 2 years of research and discussion, the State Secretary for Higher Education unveiled a plan for educational reform of the universities and technical colleges. Unlike West Germany and other Western countries where the clamor for reform has come largely from the students, in East Germany change has been directed from above and spearheaded by the state's leading educators and economists. Some student comment was permitted, however, during the discussion period prior to inauguration of the reforms.

The reform was intended to bring up the enrollment of East German universities, which by comparison with other developed countries was remarkably low, as illustrated by the following tabulation comparing the number of students per 100,000 inhabitants in 1968:

The new program also put East Germany ahead of West Germany and other developed countries of Western Europe in tying higher education more closely to the needs of an advanced, highly technological society. Primary emphasis has been placed on technical and scientific fields at the expense of the liberal arts which have been deemphasized. In recent years, however this emphasis has come under some criticism. The Honecker regime has shown considerably distrust of the scientific community, and there are indications that he would like to cut back enrollments in scientific subject in the higher schools.

Both curriculum and faculty administration have undergone drastic changes as a result of the university reform. College study has been trimmed to 4 years in contrast to the former 5 or 6, and is now broken up into four phases called Studien. The first phase, Grundstudium, includes basic concepts in natural science, Marxist-Leninist doctrine, and instruction in the use of foreign language texts. It is during this period that students perform compulsory military training (not active service). The Fachstudium, or second phase, exposes the student to theoretical bases in mathematics, natural science, sociology, engineering, and economics in his area of specialization. In the third phase, called the Specialstudium, the student concentrates entirely on his particular field. To complete the Specialstudium the student must prepare a satisfactory dissertation and pass both an oral and written examination before he can graduate and receive a diploma.

A postgraduate fourth phase, called the Forschungsstudium, is similar to U.S. postgraduate schools.

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