FAU supports its top students as part of the German government’s Deutschlandstipendium scholarship program: Each semester, annual scholarships worth 3,600 euros are awarded to the most talented students. The special feature of these scholarships is that half is donated by companies, donors, friends or alumni, and the other half comes from the German state.
Students at FAU can apply for one of the Deutschlandstipendium scholarships once a year. Funding amounts to 300 euros per month and is initially granted for one to two semesters – the winter semester and the subsequent summer semester – but can be extended annually with effect from the winter semester until the end of the standard duration of study. A renewed application is required in this case.
Application period
The application period for winter semester 2025/2026 begins on June 15, 2025, and ends on July 15, 2025 (final deadline).
The Deutschlandstipendium: Requirements and funding opportunities
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Anyone who is already receiving any other performance-based funding for gifted and talented students of more than 30 euros per month is unfortunately excluded from applying for a Deutschlandstipendium.
Further information is available on the website for the Deutschlandstipendium, under the heading “parallel funding”.
The most important prerequisite for receiving a Deutschlandstipendium scholarship from FAU are your achievements in your degree program.
Specifically, this means: Applicants on an undergraduate degree program that are applying for a Deutschlandstipendium for the first time must have good grades (2.0 or better).
If you are applying for a scholarship in the first semester of a postgraduate degree, it is the grade for the previous degree or the grade you used to apply for the postgraduate degree is decisive (2.0 or better).
If you are in a higher semester of an undergraduate or postgraduate degree when applying for a Deutschlandstipendium for the first time at FAU, you must prove that you have completed the achievements required for your degree program on the basis of the degree program and examination regulations up until the previous semester, obtaining an average grade of 2.0 or better (selection criteria quantity and quality of achievements).
In cases in which your duration of study is extended for serious reasons, such as a disability, pregnancy, acting as a caregiver or caring for a child, or for spending time abroad as part of your studies, the maximum duration of funding can be extended upon request.
If you would like to continue to receive a Deutschlandstipendium scholarship from FAU after one year, you have to prove that you have completed the achievements pursuant to the degree program and examination regulations up until the most recently completed semester, with an average grade of 2.5 or better (selection criteria quantity and quality of achievements).
In cases of hardship, you may submit a certificate from a university lecturer confirming that you are either one of their most talented students or failed to demonstrate your true potential thanks to special personal circumstances.
As well as achievements while studying, personal circumstances may also be taken into account. This includes, for instance, time spent abroad of relevance for your studies, volunteering at the university, in politics or in society and other special circumstances.
An online application form is provided once each academic year for applications for the Deutschlandstipendium at FAU: www.campus.fau.de/gstip
You will be sent the decision concerning the scholarship by post.
The Deutschlandstipendium was developed by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research in order to establish a new funding culture in Germany. The legal basis is the Act on Creating a National Scholarship Program (Gesetz zur Schaffung eines nationalen Stipendienprogramms).
Further information on that and educational goals is available on the website for the Deutschlandstipendium.
At FAU, there is a long established tradition of awarding scholarships and funding opportunities thanks to generous foundations and donations. This includes, for instance, the scholarships from the Ilse und Dr. Alexander Mayer foundation or book grants from the Oskar Karl Forster foundation. More than ten foundations and funding opportunities are available to students at FAU.
Information is also available on our overview of foundations.
In addition, there are numerous extramural funding opportunities such as the foundations and organizations for the promotion of young talent from the churches and political parties, the “Studienstiftung des Volkes” and so on. An overview is available on the page on scholarship providers.
Deutschlandstipendium – a blog post from funklust
Sally, who has been awarded a Deutschlandstipendium and Sandra, FAU supervisor, give an insight into the Deutschlandstipendium at FAU during their interview.
Further information
Would you like to support students at FAU by providing a Deutschlandstipendium? Detailed information is available on our page about becoming a donor for the Deutschlandstipendium.
