Application and enrolment for international applicants

Applications for a German course or the pre-entry program (Studienkolleg) should be filed online only.

For all other applications, after completing your online application, you must print and sign the completed application form (from the campo application portal) and send it by post to our Admissions Office (FAU Erlangen-Nürnberg, Zulassungsstelle, Schlossplatz 4, 91054 Erlangen) with all the following documents:

• CV (without photo)
• school leaving certificate (complete certificate)
• German language certificates (regular copy)

Further documents may be necessary depending on the desired degree programme, your country of origin and your previous education.

• If applicable: pre-university year certificate (e.g. applicants from Iran)
• If applicable: university entrance examination certificate from your home country
• If applicable: assessment examination (Feststellungsprüfung) for the degree programme in question (certified copy)
• if you have completed previous periods of study: complete academic report/transcript of records
• if you have completed a previous degree: degree certificate (e.g. Bachelor’s degree, Diplom)
• Applicants who have completed previous periods of study in China, India or Vietnam: APS certificate (original)
• Applicants from DSDI/DSDII schools in China: confirmation of identity from the German embassy (original)
• Applicants for Food Chemistry, Medicine, Pharmacy, or Dentistry must submit proof of passing the Deutsche Sprachprüfung für den Hochschulzugang ausländischer Studienbewerber (DSH 2) or an equivalent examination.

• Certified copies of foreign certificates that are not issued in German, English or French must be submitted with a certified translation. If your documents do not fulfil the requirements or if important certificates are missing, your application will not be processed. More information on document certification and translation is available here.
• Completeness: Please note that for applications to be processed all necessary documents have to be enclosed. This means that applications must not be submitted without certificates and supporting documents.
• Studienkolleg: Please ensure you find out whether you can apply directly for the degree programme you have chosen or whether you must first complete the ‘Studienkolleg’ or pass the assessment examination (Feststellungsprüfung). More information is available on our page about the Evaluation of international qualifications and ‘Studienkolleg’.
• Start of degree programme: The majority of undergraduate subjects can only be started in the winter semester; that means that enrolment for the summer semester is only possible for higher semesters. However, this is dependent on whether any previous course and examination achievements have been accredited.

For winter semester 2023/24, applicants from India will require an APS certificate to start a degree program (Bachelor’s degree, State Examination and Master’s degree) in Germany, if the applicant has obtained a secondary education certificate or studied in India.

If you are granted admission to a degree program without admission restrictions or with a qualification assessment procedure (Eignungsfeststellungsverfahren) for winter semester 2023/24, you must present the APS certificate on enrollment at the latest. This exception does not apply to all degree programs with admission restrictions. APS certificates must be presented when applying for degree programs with admission restrictions. Applicants without an APS certificate cannot enroll. The following degree programs are affected:

• Medizin
• Medizin Erlangen/Bayreuth
• Zahnmedizin
• Pharmazie
• Molekulare Medizin (BSc)
• Psychologie Vollzeit (BSc)
• Psychologie Teilzeit (BSc)
• Lebensmittelchemie
• International Business Studies (BSc)
• International Economic Studies (BSc)
• Lehramtsstudiengänge mit den Teilfächern Biologie (Lehramt Grundschule/Mittelschule)/Biologie (Lehramt Realschule/Bachelor of Education)

An APS certificate is not required for applications/enrollment if one of the following conditions is met:

• The applicant is already resident in Germany and has proof of residence (Meldebescheinigung) that is not older than three months.
• The highest educational qualification originates from a country other than India, China or Vietnam.

Please note that applications for an APS certificate can also be made online. For more information, please visit the APS India website: aps-india.de

In addition to submitting your application for the winter semester via campo, please note that for some Bachelor’s degree programs you will also have to apply beforehand via the dialog-oriented service procedure (DoSV) managed by the Stiftung für Hochschulzulassung. This concerns:

• Foreign students who have attended a school in Germany and therefore all foreign applicants and stateless persons who have attained a German university entrance qualification or have completed a degree in Germany that qualifies them to apply for the degree program.
• Citizens from an EU member state
• Spouses of German citizens
• Citizens from contracting states for the Agreement on the European Economic Area that are not members of the EU, which means Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway.
• Other family members of citizens of another EU member state or of a contracting state of the Agreement on the European Economic Area who live in Germany, provided these citizens are employed in Germany. The term “other family members” includes spouses.

This applies to the following degree programs for winter semester 2023/24 (as of June 2023):

• International Business Studies (BSc; taught in English)
• International Economic Studies (BSc; taught in English)
• Food Chemistry (State Examination)
• Molecular Medicine (BSc)
• Psychology (BSc; full time and part time)

More information about the dialog-oriented service procedure is available at hochschulstart.de, A checklist on DoSV can also be found in the Downloads” section on that website.

For degree programmes in Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmacy, please apply to the Stiftung für Hochschulzulassung (Foundation for University Admissions (SfH)) if you are:

• an applicant from a European Union (EU) state
• an applicant from an EEA country not in the EU (Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway)
• a ‘BildungsinländerIn’ (foreign students at German universities who have attended a school in Germany)
• an international applicant living in Germany with relatives who are EU/EEA citizens and work in Germany (e.g. husband, wife, parents).

Irrespective of your nationality, you are considered a ‘BildungsinländerIn’ if you have obtained your university entrance qualification in Germany or at a German school abroad. The same application conditions apply to you as those for prospective students from Germany.

Graduates of German schools abroad who want to start a degree programme at FAU receive particular support. The application procedure is based on the school-leaving qualification obtained.

• Application procedure with a German ‘Abitur’
  If you have obtained the German general university entrance qualification Abitur at a ‘Gymnasium’ secondary school or a German secondary education certificate at a German school abroad, you are entitled to start a degree programme at any German university, irrespective of your nationality. This means you are a ‘BildungsinländerIn’. This means that you can apply to and enrol at FAU just like any German prospective student. Detailed information: Application and enrolment
• Application procedure with the school-leaving qualification obtained in your home country
  If you have obtained a non-German school-leaving qualification at a German school or partner school in your home country or if you have obtained the International Baccalaureate and the Deutsches Sprachdiplom DSD II you can apply for a degree programme at FAU via the application procedure for international students.

Advice and support for applications from graduates of German schools abroad

FAU is part of the Bavarian support initiative for German schools abroad and partner schools abroad (Bayerische Betreuungsinitiative Deutsche Auslands- und Partnerschulen – BayBIDS). As part of this initiative, we visit German schools abroad to introduce pupils there to the university. We also organise and support visits to FAU for pupils of German schools abroad.

Contact

Kerstin Seitz, Dipl.-Germ.

Schloßplatz 3, Ecke Halbmondstr. 6
91054 Erlangen

• Phone number: +49 9131 85-24876
• Mobile phone: +491622953960
• Email: ibz-phil@fau.de
• Website: http://www.ibz.fau.de

More › Details for Kerstin Seitz

School leavers who apply for a degree programme at FAU can also apply for a one-year scholarship in the amount of 400 euros per month. More information on these support programmes is available on the BayBiDS (Bayerische Betreuungsinitiative Deutsche Auslands- und Partnerschulen) website: www.baybids.de

Prospective students who have already acquired the IB (and do not have German citizenship) should follow the standard application procedures for prospective international students. Applicants who are at an international school and will gain the IB this year will not usually have their final certificate in time for the application deadline. You must therefore ensure that you have the relevant proof in good time so that your application can still be considered. The application process in this case depends on the degree programme you choose and your nationality. If you fall under the ‘special group of applicants’ category for medicine, medicine in Erlangen-Nuremberg/Bayreuth, dentistry, and pharmacy (see above), you will have to apply via hochschulstart.de. Information for this group is available only in German.

The following applies to applications for decentralized subjects with admission restrictions:
If you would like to apply for a degree program with admission restrictions at FAU directly after completing your examinations for the IB Diploma, and before the deadline of July 15 applicable at Bavarian universities, you must send the following documents by post to the Office for the Recognition of Certificates (Zeugnisanerkennungsstelle) by the end of April:

1. A simple photocopy of your ID card or passport
2. An overview in tabular form (similar to a CV) detailing which school year you completed each grade
3. German contact address
4. A certified photocopy of the original of your final report card for the 10th grade
5. A certified photocopy of the original of your IB diploma with overview of subjects and grades
6. IB-Results Summary of the last four semesters

Additionally, you have to apply to the IBO (not your school!) for an official transcript of grades that is transferred to the Office for the Recognition of Certificates online by the IBO when grades are announced on July 5 of the year of the examination. The Office for the Recognition of Certificates then sends a letter of notification to your contact address in order to ensure you can apply in time. You can attach your provisional confirmation of accreditation and your IB grade certificate to your application or submit them at a later date, once you receive them. If you intend to submit them at a later date, please attach a note to your application stating that you have obtained the IB and that you have asked the Office for the Recognition of Certificates for a provisional notice of accreditation. These documents are provisionally accepted as proof of obtaining university entrance qualification. If you are granted admission, you can also use these documents to enroll. You should submit your final certificate to the Student Records Office by the start of the lecture period at the latest.

This and further information on the IB is available as an information sheet in German on the website of the Bayerisches Landesamt für Schule.

Prospective doctoral candidates have to submit the permission form (‘Promotionsgenehmigung’) approved by the respective Faculty along with their transcripts/certificates to start a doctoral degree. You will only receive this permission if your degree from abroad is considered equivalent to the required German qualifications. You also need a note of acceptance (‘Betreuungszusage’) from your supervisor. More information (including the application requirements) is available on the Graduate Centre’s website.

If you want to spend one or two semesters at FAU as an exchange student (e.g. Erasmus/SOKRATES programme) or a scholarship holder (e.g. DAAD), please contact FAU’s Office of International Affairs.