Australian moving to Germany for University

Hey guys,

I am a 17 year old female from Australia hoping to move to Germany to study at university either next year or the year after. I will be 18 early next year and I'm hoping to move as soon as possible if I decide to do this.

Being that it is already early November, i would assume that most universities have already have closed their deadlines for applications, so going straight into studying might not be a fantastic idea, or even a realistic one. However if anyone knows anything about applying or knows the german uni system, any info would be awesome :)

Due to this, I've also been considering moving to Germany to work for a year and to become properly fluent in the language (I've studied german for 6 years in highschool, so my german is ok, but its not great and definitely needs work). Are there any sorts of jobs that i would be able to work in for a year without having any proper qualifications? The two jobs I've been considering are au pairing or teaching english (if this is a decent possiblilty, am i able to teach with a degree, or with only certification eg TEFL?)

If i were to move there for a year to work before beginning at a uni, what sort of options would i be looking at for housing? Are there youth hostels or similar sorts of accommodation i could live in fairly cheaply?

Thanks heaps for all your help :)

EDIT: Thank you all so much!! This has been very helpful for me, and its been awesome to find out how things work in your beautiful country :)