Hochschule

From hoch (“high”) +‎ Schule (“school”).

• IPA^(key): /ˈhoːxˌʃuːlə/

• Audio:

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• Hyphenation: Hoch‧schu‧le

Hochschule f (genitive Hochschule, plural Hochschulen)

1. college; university; graduate school; institute; academy (educational institution for advanced studies, usually academic, but also arts, etc.)

   Hyponyms: Universität, Fachhochschule

The difference between Hochschule and Universität is that a Universität is reserved for institutions that confer doctorates, whereas Hochschule is a broader term that includes those universities and colleges, which only confer lesser degrees and have no doctoral programs.

Note that Hochschule is a false friend and does not mean "high school". There is no equivalent to "high school" in Germany. Germany has a completely different school structure than that of the United States. German students attend Realschule from ages 10 to around age 16. After Realschule, they move on to either Gymnasium (comparable to a "college preparatory school") or move on to a Berufsschule ("vocational school").

• Fachhochschule

• “Hochschule” in Duden online
• “Hochschule” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache