Financing your studies

Once you have enrolled, you will need to pay the semester fee for the first time. This fee is payable again at the start of each semester when you re-register to continue your studies. This fee comprises various components and includes, for example, the contribution to the Karlsruhe Student Services Organisation. The fee currently stands at around €210.

In addition to the standard semester fee, tuition fees may apply depending on your individual circumstances and degree programme. You can find the deadlines, amounts and breakdown of your fees on the degree programme page and the page relating to your re-registration.

Student finance under the Federal Training Assistance Act (BAföG) is probably the best-known form of support. You will receive a loan, only part of which you will need to repay once you have completed your studies. 

The application office responsible for our university is the BAföG Office of the Studierendenwerk Karlsruhe. You submit your application for BAföG directly there, and if you have any questions, this office will be happy to help. For an initial BAföG application and the first semesters of your studies, proof of enrolment is usually sufficient. Your certificate of enrolment, which you can access via the e-portal, meets the required criteria.

Not everyone is eligible to receive BAföG; certain conditions apply. However, if you are not eligible, there are still other ways to finance your studies.

A scholarship is a form of student financial support whereby government bodies, foundations or companies provide funds that you can use towards your studies. “The Successful Path to a Scholarship” is a free guide containing all the information you need on this topic.

The scholarship portal www.mystipendium.de lists over 1,200 financing opportunities, systematically categorised according to 34 eligibility criteria, such as field of study, parents’ occupation or the applicant’s background. Based on these criteria, the portal shows you which scholarships match your individual profile.

On the ‘Stipendium Plus’ page, you can view the various financing opportunities provided by the organisations for the promotion of gifted students, which are funded by the BMBF (Federal Ministry of Education and Research). Each of these organisations also has a designated contact person at our university. Please feel free to enquire about this at our Central Student Advisory Service.

The Stipendienkompass team regularly offers online seminars and provides an overview of the various opportunities available.

The search engine on the KISSWIN internet portal allows you to search specifically by type of financing (scholarships for undergraduates, postgraduate scholarships, awards, etc.), research areas or regions. The information is updated daily. The ELFI database also allows you to search for student scholarships free of charge.