Admission, finances, visa and language skills

You must include the following documents with your application:

• Fully completed and signed application for admission
• Copy
  • of your foreign school-leaving certificate
  • of the university entrance examination and
  • university transcripts (if applicable)
• Your certificates must be submitted
  • as the original version
  • as well as in German or English
  • Any translations must be done by a state-certified translator.
• Proof of German language skills.
• A complete, tabular curriculum vitae with photo
• An internship certificate (some degree programmes require an internship or practical vocational training as a prerequisite for admission).
• Proof of nationality (copy of passport).
   
• Applicants from China, Vietnam and India only:
  • Original certificate from the Academic Evaluation Centre

The following German language examinations will be accepted:

• TestDaF = Test German as a Foreign Language, Level 3 or Level 4 – depending on the study programme
• DSH = German Language Examination for University Admission, Level 1 or Level 2 – depending on the study programme
• telc German C1 for University
• German Language Diploma from the Kultusministerkonferenz, 2nd level
• Certificate C2 from the Goethe Institute

Prospective students and students who wish to stay longer than three months at a university in Germany need a valid residence permit for study purposes.

These residence permits will not be issued by the Aliens Department responsible in Germany unless a valid study visa for studying in Germany is produced.

Exceptions to this regulation are study applicants and students from the EU states and the European Economic Area (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway) and from states with which the Federal Republic of Germany has agreed on deviating regulations.

This currently applies to Andorra, Australia, Brazil, El Salvador, Great Britain, Honduras, Israel, Japan, Canada, Monaco, New Zealand, San Marino, Switzerland, South Korea and the USA.

They must apply for a residence permit within three months of entering the country.

The visa must be applied for and issued at a German mission abroad (embassy, consulate) before you enter the country.

You should never enter Germany as a tourist if you want to study or do research. It is not possible to change a tourist visa into a study visa.

At the German mission abroad in your home country, you can obtain information on the regulations in force for entry and residence in Germany.

If you have not yet been admitted to university, the German mission abroad can issue a so-called "applicant visa".

This also applies to applicants who wish to attend the Studienkolleg or a language course first. The residence permit issued in this way can be converted into a residence permit for study purposes after successful admission.

You will need the following documents in order to obtain an applicant visa:

• Certified copies of educational certificates entitling the holder to pursue higher education studies in Germany
• Confirmation of application from a German university or acceptance from a language school
• Proof of a health certificate and/or sufficient health insurance
• Proof of financing of the study period
• Passport

The German embassy or consulate in your home country will inform you which certificates are recognised and whether further proof may be required.

To issue a visa for study purposes, the same documents are required as for the applicant visa. Instead of an application confirmation, however, the university's notification of admission must be submitted here.

With a residence permit for study purposes, non-EU foreigners may work 140 full days or 280 half days per year in Germany.

In order not to have to claim any social benefits from the German state during their stay, foreign applicants/students from a third country must prove that they have the equivalent of the BAföG maximum funding rate for a period of one year (which equals € 11,904 or € 992 per month, from September 2024 onward).

Proof of financing can be show by:

• Producing proof of the parents' income and financial situation,
• or a declaration of commitment to the Aliens Department or the mission abroad to pay the living expenses of the foreign student,
• or the payment of a security deposit into a blocked account in Germany,
• or the deposit of a bank guarantee, to be renewed annually, with a financial institution within the territory of the Federal Republic of Germany,
• or by scholarships from German public funds or scholarships from a funding organisation recognised in Germany or scholarships from public funds of the country of origin, if the Federal Foreign Office, the German Academic Exchange Service or another German funding organisation has taken over the placement at the German higher education institution.

You must inquire locally as to which of these financing documents is recognised by the German mission in your home country.

Please find more information on financing on our page Funding your studies as an international student. 

For one semester at HAWK you will have to pay between 400 - 500 Euros semester fees, depending on the study location. This includes a ticket (Deutschlandsemesterticket) to ride the local trains in Germany free of charge.