FAQ - Häufig gestellte Fragen

Yes, the application and awarding of the scholarship are dependent on you being enrolled at the University of Cologne (for the application itself, the letter of admission is initially sufficient).

All students enrolled at the University of Cologne within the standard period of study can apply; doctoral candidates, guest students, exchange students and participants in study preparation programmes are excluded.

No, a scholarship is dependent on you being enrolled at the University of Cologne.

Yes, foreign students enrolled at the University of Cologne can apply for a scholarship.

Since cross-registered students are only admitted to a degree programme at the University of Cologne, it is unfortunately not possible to apply. However, it is possible to apply for a scholarship at the university where you are enrolled as a student.

In cases where there are valid reasons, the funding period can be extended by a maximum of one semester beyond the standard period of study.

That depends. In some cases, double funding is possible through a combination with scholarships from organizations for the promotion of talented students (Begabtenförderungswerke). However, please note the provisions of the respective scholarship programme. On the other hand, it may be that a list regularly updated by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research does not permit other funding in individual cases. Please contact us in case of doubt.

No, funding in an ERASMUS or DAAD programme does not count as double funding, as long as it is only a partial scholarship. You can therefore apply.

Yes, you can apply for the Master's programme. Please enter in the application form the end of your studies and the number of semesters in which you will be studying in the upcoming semester. Please note that for Master's applications the application process starts again, i.e. with the first Master's semester.

Yes, as a rule, the scholarship is not counted towards BAföG. However, if you have your own income, please contact your BAföG office.

The award criteria include outstanding performance in school or university, as well as other criteria such as volunteer work, special personal or family circumstances, internships, awards and prizes. The selection is made by an elected award committee of the respective Faculty.

Applications are only possible once a year for the winter semester. The next scholarship application process for the winter semester 2025/26 will take place from August, 4th to August,  29th  2025. You will find out at the beginning of December if you have been accepted into the scholarship programme for the wintersemester 2025/26. In order to ensure that all applications and the entire procedure are processed quickly, we kindly ask you to refrain from making any inquiries until then. Thank you for your understanding.

The funding period begins on 1 October 2025. Since the decision on the awarding of scholarships cannot be made until December, the first payment is expected to be made in December, retroactively for the last quarter of 2025.

The Deutschlandstipendium is awarded for two semesters. The monthly scholarship rate is 300 euros.

The number of scholarship places available depends on the amount of funding received. In the last round, 239 Deutschlandstipendien, 16 social scholarships and 9 inclusion were awarded.

This depends on the number of applications, the personal requirements of the individual applicant and the number of scholarships available. Experience has shown that most applicants are very realistic about their own academic performance and their chances of receiving a scholarship, so that only those who are suitable apply. A large number of these applicants can then be awarded a scholarship.

No, the selection process is exclusively carried out via theAPPLICATION PORTAL.

No, in terms of equal treatment, applications received outside the deadline unfortunately cannot be considered. Access to the APPLICATION PORTAL is only possible during the application period. However, you can already prepare and digitize your application documents and instruct someone to submit the online application.

PLEASE NOTE:This year the process will run on a new APPLICATION PORTAL, one for all scholarship programs. The link to the application portal will be activated in time when the application period starts.

In principle, all applications are ranked according to their performance criteria. Generally, there are standardized criteria for the ranking of applicants, but the criteria details are specific for each Faculty. The performance of current scholarship holders and new applicants is compared.

Yes, all applicants will be informed about the decision after the selection process has been completed. This usually happens at the beginning of December.

Yes, re-application is possible within the standard period of study.

You apply actively for a scholarship. Before you apply, please take a careful look at the guidelines for the scholarship programs.Only then you should go to the APPLICATION PORTAL.

Please note that only applications that are submitted on time with all required documents will be admitted to the selection procedure. Therefore, please check the completeness of your application. Please also keep in mind that the uploaded file is limited to max. 20 MB. Make sure from the outset that you create pdf files with low memory requirements. In a second step, merge several pdf files into one file in the correct order.

For all types of scholarships:

• CV in tabular form (max. 2 pages)
• Cover/motivation letter (max. 1–2 pages in A4 format)
• Qualification for admission to higher education
• for students from the beginning of the 3rd semester: current transcript of records from previous studies
• in the case of Master’s applications: Bachelor’s certificate and credited overall grade
• in case of foreign Bachelor certificates: VPD from Uni-assist
• Training certificate or proof of professional experience, if applicable
• for first-year students: letter of admission or certificate of enrolment, if available
• BAföG notice(s), if applicable
• other documents supporting the information under the social criteria field (e.g. honorary post etc.)

Only for the Sozialstipendium:

• proof of social need – if possible – by other official certificates
• on a separate extra sheet, detailed list of all available monthly financial resources from parents, other relatives, BAföG, scholarships, rent subsidies, subsistence allowances, child benefits etc.
• details of parents’ occupation and income
• copies of statement of earnings or income tax assessment

Only for the Inklusionstipendium

• evidence of disability or chronic illness (medical or official medical reports and official documents; in particular, a pass for disabled persons or an assessment notice on the degree of disability, if available, must be submitted).

The documents can be submitted in German or English. Proofs in other languages must be submitted in translation, copies of certificates must be officially certified.

What matters is in which semester you are: If it is the first or second semester, you are also a first-year student in the Master's degree programme, otherwise you are an advanced student.

No, at the University of Cologne there is no specific grade point average for the scholarship programme. Whether a certain average is sufficient for a scholarship ultimately depends on the number of all applicants and their grade point averages as well as the number of scholarships available.

No, please state the missing grades in the application form and submit an updated transcript of records issued by the examination office via the APPLICATION PORTAL as soon as possible, but only within the application period. Your application can only be considered in the selection process if it contains all required documents and is received within the application period. Documents submitted later by e-mail cannot be considered for reasons of equal opportunity. Please note that it is mandatory to admit your application within the application period even if you have not yet been admitted to your degree programme at that time.

As we are aware that the transcripts of records of medical students do not show individual grades, the indications “passed” or “failed” are sufficient. You do not need to provide evidence of individual results.

All documents must be uploaded in a single PDF file of max. 20 MB. Please put your documents together in the following order:

For all types of scholarships:

• CV in tabular form (max. 2 pages)
• Cover/motivation letter (max. 1–2 pages in A4 format)
• Qualification for admission to higher education
• for students from the beginning of the 3rd semester: current transcript of records from previous studies
• in the case of Master’s applications: Bachelor’s certificate and credited overall grade
• in case of foreign Bachelor certificates: VPD from Uni-assist
• Training certificate or proof of professional experience, if applicable
• for first-year students: letter of admission or certificate of enrolment, if available
• BAföG notice(s), if applicable
• other documents supporting the information under the social criteria field (e.g. honorary post etc.)

Only for the Sozialstipendium:

• proof of social need – if possible – by other official certificates
• on a separate extra sheet, detailed list of all available monthly financial resources from parents, other relatives, BAföG, scholarships, rent subsidies, subsistence allowances, child benefits etc.
• details of parents’ occupation and income
• copies of statement of earnings or income tax assessment

Only for the Inklusionstipendium

• evidence of disability or chronic illness (medical or official medical reports and official documents; in particular, a pass for disabled persons or an assessment notice on the degree of disability, if available, must be submitted).

Please note that the University of Cologne reserves the right to request certified copies of your certificates if a scholarship is awarded.

Server overloads may occur towards the end of the application period. In your own interest, we recommend that you apply early, as documents submitted later can only be considered within the application period.