Information for refugees

At the moment, all students have to pay a semester fee of 154,00 € per semester. Aditionally there are tuition fees for international students in Baden Württemberg. You will find information on exceptions for refugees here.

In order to finance your studies you have several possibilities: You can either apply for BAföG and/or a scholarship or you can try to find a part-time job. If you plan on working during your studies, it is important to check the regulations stated in your residence permit. 

BAföG is a state-funded financial aid programme. If you are a recognised refugee (i.e. entitled to asylum, granted refugee status or subsidiary protection), you can apply for BAföG irrespective of how long you have already been in Germany. Asylum seekers who are waiting for legal recognition can only apply under certain circumstances. You will find further information here.

Studierendenwerk Heidelberg offers weekly walk-in hours ("BAföG-Beratung") to help you assess whether you are potentially eligible to apply for BAföG and to answer all of the questions you might have regarding BAföG. 

There are different scholarships many of which refugees can apply for after enrolment in a German University. An overview of all possibilites is availabe here.

Additionally, there are different scholarship programmes specifically for refugees:

• Baden-Württemberg-Programm
• Brot für die Welt
• Welcome und Tandem bei der Deutschen Universitätsstiftung
• Stipendien der Hans-Böckler-Stiftung
• Notfall-Fonds DAAD-Stiftung
• Evangelisches Studienwerk Villigst

There is no connection between your request for asylum/your residence permit and your studies. But it is absolutely necessary to contact the Foreign Affairs Office (Ausländerbehörde), in many cases also the social security department (Sozialamt), before you enrol.

Yes. You will still have to go through the general application process. After beeing admitted, you need to submit a request regarding the recognition of exams that you passed in your home country as well as proof thereof. The respective examination committee will determine the recognition of exams.

It is generally possible to change universities but you will have to submit a new application.There is no guarantee that you will be admitted. If the courses of the degree programmes are similar, there is a chance that you can transfer some of the course credits into the new programme.

It is only possible if you are interested in studying one of the Master's programmes that are completely taught in English. For all other degree programmes, a German level of B2/C1 is required proven by one of the language tests listed here. Here you will find more detailed information on the required language certificates, which may vary according to the course of study: https://www.hs-heilbronn.de/en/applying-for-undergraduate-programmes-ba

The grade average needed to be admitted depends on the selected degree programme and the number of applications. Here you will find an overview of the admission statutes for the specific degree programs.

No. However, BAföG and some scholarships have age limits.

At the moment, Heilbronn University of Applied Sciences does not offer any German language classes to prepare you for one of the language tests necessary for your application. You can contact the Jobcenter to find out more about suitable language classes. In addition, language schools in the region will be able to inform you about available language courses.

For those who already have German language skills on a B1 or B2 level as well as a university entrance qualification, aim (Akademie für Innovative Bildung und Management Heilbronn-Franken) offers a study preparation course ("Studienvorbereitendes Jahr für Zuwanderer").Participants will be prepared to reach a C1 level of German by the end of the course. More information is available at the  aim website.