u/404BarelyFunctioning

My PhD application status has been stuck at “Associate Dean review” for about two weeks now. For those who’ve been through this stage before, how long did it usually take before your application moved forward?Has anyone else experienced long delays at this stage?

I know two weeks may not sound that long, but it’s honestly stressful being stuck at the “Associate Dean review” stage with no updates, especially since housing, visa timelines, and other plans depend on the outcome.

Hi everyone, Quick question for those who’ve dealt with the LEA recently. A friend applied for a residence permit extension months ago (before expiry), but still hasn’t received any response. She has a trip abroad (within EU) in 2 weeks, so she submitted a Notfall request 2 weeks ago with flight tickets.. and still nothing.

At this point we’re wondering: does showing up early at Friedrich-Krause-Ufer (like 4–5 AM) still work in 2026 for getting a same-day Fiktionsbescheinigung? Any recent experiences would really help 🙏

https://preview.redd.it/lnto3kdij9yg1.png?width=1302&format=png&auto=webp&s=56ad4fb021281e2a2f7b926c0aed483adf86cde5

I just took the TOEFL iBT for the first time last saturday (and also my first English proficiency test ever) and got 110/120. English isn’t my first language, so I was honestly expecting worse lol. I only prepared for about a week, so I figured I’d share what worked.

Resources I used:

• ETS official mock test
• TST
• Magoosh
• TestGlider

Some are easier, some harder. I mainly used them just to get used to the format. If I had to pick, I liked TestGlider the most because the mock tests go from easy → hard, so it gives you a better range.

What actually mattered is strategy: Since this was my first English test ever, I had no idea where I stood. So first thing I did was a full diagnose test (mock test from the official ETS website). Turns out: reading & listening = fine, and writing & speaking = bad, never scored above 4.5, and my lowest was a 3 lol... So I basically stopped “studying everything” and just focused on my weak areas (aka writing and speaking)

Writing: I used ChatGPT to simulate TOEFL questions and grade my answers. I didn’t memorize templates because I’ve seen people say that can backfire (?) Instead I kind of built my own structure over time.

Speaking This was honestly the hardest section for me. Two websites I’d really recommend for speaking practice are Elsa Speech Analyzer and TOEFL MySpeakingScore. Both give you a rough estimate of your level and, more importantly, break down your strengths and weaknesses (which is super useful for diagnosing why you’re losing points). For me, it turned out my main issues were vocabulary and grammar, especially under time pressure. Sometimes I’d also just freeze for a second, even though I didn’t really struggle with idea generation or overall fluency. Besides those two tools, I mainly practiced with timed questions and used ChatGPT to generate speaking prompts.

Listen and repeat trick (this helped a lot imo) there are alr so many youtube channels to practice this specific task. For listen and repeat I did shadowing: follow what the speaker says in real time (in your head) then repeat it out loud. I did NOT take notes while doing this because I’m bad at multitasking and I’d just forget everything (again, just figure out what works for you. Some people can multitask well, so it might work for them)

Overall, I think it’s not just about your English level... it’s really about how you approach the test. Figure out your weak spots early and focus on those instead of trying to improve everything at once. Try different methods of e.g. taking notes, and see what works best for you. Also, practice under time pressure, especially for writing... so you get a sense of how long you actually need during the real exam.

I never had a strict time schedule for studying, but I always made sure to do at least one mock test per day, plus targeted practice on weak sections.

At the end of the day, it really comes down to strategy. Your English level obviously matters, but knowing how to approach each section can make a huge difference.

Good luck!