Scholarships and Financing
Tuition fees
Tuition fees in Germany are quite cheap when combined with other countries. Most universities and technical colleges are financed by the state and just a small amount is financed by the students. In Germany every state can decide if tuition fees are necessary or if they can be dismissed. The federal states Bayern, Hamburg, Niedersachsen and Nordrhein-Westfalen do charge tuition fees which are about 500 Euros, which is quite cheap. The other federal states do not charge tuition fees but some have special regulations concerning long-time students or a second degree. All students have to pay another amount of money called the semester fee. With this fee the administration costs for the own person are paid and cafeterias, residential homes or sport facilities are financed. In most cases with these fees one also gets a semester ticket that can be used for bus or train in the area. The semester fee is about 150 to 250 Euros. To study at a private university or technical college is much more expensive because these are financed only by tuition fees. The fees for these universities can be up to 20.000 Euros per year.
Living costs
Additionally, there are costs for a health insurance which is necessary in Germany and the normal living costs. Renting costs can differ a lot depending on where and how one wants to live. In the big industrial and university cities the rent can be quite expensive because there is not much space for all the people. For German students it is therefore normal to share a flat with other people and make an apartment-sharing community to lower the costs for everyone. Another cheap opportunity is the residential homes from the university. These are always strongly demanded and it is therefore important to apply for a place early. Costs for the rent are in residential homes 200 – 400 Euros, in apartment-sharing communities about 300 – 500 Euros and for a single apartment from 400 Euro upwards, these amounts can differ from town to town. In addition to the rent there are also costs for food, books, copies, telephone, internet, clothing, free-time and many more. Combined with other countries Germany has EU-average costs in this area. How much money is needed depends on many coefficients. One can calculate with about 200 – 300 Euros. To finance all these things it is important to know early enough what budget one has and what are the other alternatives. A student-job in Germany cannot always be done by international students. First there have to be checked the rules and regulations for one’s home country. But then a student-job can be a good way to improve the budget. Job offers can be received from university as well.
