Possible funding options for students
Scholarships, sponsorship awards, BAföG or part-time jobs? Keeping track of the numerous ways to finance your studies is not that easy. Although there are no tuition fees for studying at our Business School at Pforzheim University, the cost of living during full-time studies should not be underestimated. The following overview should help you find the information you need. Find the optimal solution for your individual life situation in order to master your Bachelor's or Master's degree course with a solid financial foundation.
Please also take advantage of the information events organized by the Business School.
Scholarships
What benefits do students receive?
The benefits vary depending on the scholarship provider. They are mainly financial and non-material offers.
- Fixed payments not dependent on income
- Grants based on income and assets
- Funding for study periods abroad
- Grants for teaching materials
- Non-material educational offers
Networking opportunities
Who funds a scholarship?
Scholarships are funded by various sources. These include, for example, political or private organizations, religious communities, companies or trade unions. Some foundations have joined forces as organizations for the promotion of gifted students and are supported by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF). Overall, funding organizations can therefore be divided according to their orientation:
- political
- denominational
- trade union/entrepreneurial
- ideological/independent
How do I apply for a scholarship?
The first step is to search for information at an early stage in order to find a suitable scholarship and meet the deadlines. There are numerous scholarship databases on the Internet that will make your search easier. Check whether you meet the formal award criteria for the most part. The better your profile matches the requirements, the better your chances. Your application must be complete and accurate. A letter of motivation, CV and other certificates are often required.
In some cases, there are also scholarships for which students must be nominated by teachers, for example.
What kind of scholarships are there?
There are many different sponsors and foundations throughout Germany with different focuses, values and criteria. The most important ones are listed here. Please follow the links for further information.
Deutschlandstipendium (public and private)
The Germany Scholarship is awarded annually in the winter semester by Pforzheim University to particularly talented, capable and socially committed students. The application phase takes place in spring. Both Bachelor's and Master's students can apply. The only exclusion criterion is the maximum funding period, which is based on the standard period of study. The monthly funding amount of 300 euros is financed in equal parts by the federal government and private sponsors and is independent of income.
You will find further information at www.deutschlandstipendium.de.
Advancement scholarship (public)
The advancement scholarship supports committed specialists or students who have completed vocational training and have practical work experience. It only has to be a first degree (full-time or part-time). With up to 1,000 scholarships awarded each year, it is one of the largest student grants in Germany. Funding is independent of income and currently amounts to around 900 euros per month plus book allowance and childcare allowance for children under 14.
Please visit www.aufstiegsstipendium.de for details.
Gifted scholarships (public)
13 scholarship providers supported by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) have joined forces to form the Begabtenförderungswerke. They provide financial and non-material support to high-achieving and socially committed students and doctoral candidates. The standard financial support for students is based on the BAföG guidelines and is therefore dependent on the student's own income and assets as well as those of their parents or spouse. In addition, an income-independent lump sum of 300 euros per month is paid out. Study periods abroad can be funded in the same way.
There should be a certain proximity to the idealistic orientation of the sponsoring foundation.
Further information can be found at www.stipendiumplus.de.
e-fellows.net scholarship
Students from all subject areas can apply for the e-fellows.net scholarship. Selection is based on academic performance, internships and study periods abroad as well as commitments outside the course of study. It is awarded for one year and includes monetary benefits worth over 1,000 euros, such as free subscriptions, access to databases, books and vouchers.
You can find out more at www.e-fellows.net.
Smaller scholarship providers
There are also many other, smaller scholarship providers. This sometimes requires a little more research, but it can be well worth it. Regional foundations or associations, local companies and subject-specific funding organizations are the first places to start.
Further information on scholarships is available for download.
Please also get in touch with the university's contact persons.
Federal Training Assistance Act (BAföG)
What is BAföG?
The abbreviation BAföG stands for the Federal Training Assistance Act. It provides state support for all those who are unable to finance their education using their own resources. Half of the funding is provided as a grant, the other half as an interest-free loan. Only the loan has to be refunded later. Repayment begins five years after the end of the maximum funding period and amounts to a maximum of 10,010 euros.
How much is the grant?
The funding is based on the financial means of the applicant and their family. This means that the calculation depends on the individual living situation.
General rule:
Depending on your living situation, this results in a needs rate. From this, 1. the eligible income and assets of the student and 2. the eligible income of the parents and spouse or registered partner are deducted. This results in the grant amount.
Where do I submit the application?
The BAföG office of the Studierendenwerk Karlsruhe is responsible for students at Pforzheim University. There you can get advice and download the necessary forms. If you do not yet have all the documents, an informal application is recommended to meet the deadline. The funding starts at the earliest with the month of application, even if your studies have already started earlier.
Detailed information and the option to submit a digital application can be found at www.bafög.de.
Who receives BAföG?
As a student at the Business School, you can apply for BAföG for both Bachelor's and Master's degree programs as long as you have not yet reached the age of 45. No special aptitude or talent is required. Whether BAföG is granted depends primarily on your assets and income as well as those of your parents and your spouse or registered partner. Your nationality and residence status are also relevant.
What counts as personal income and assets? (as of August 2023)
Your own income is made up of private income. The relevant period is the approval period, i.e. the academic year for which the application is submitted. Income tax and church tax, social security contributions (health, unemployment and pension insurance) and the old-age relief amount are deducted. In addition, the allowance is currently 520 euros per month (mini-job).
Own assets include, for example, land, motor vehicles, cash, savings or building society savings contracts. The allowance for assets that are not taken into account when calculating BAföG has recently been significantly increased and currently amounts to 15,000 euros for people under 30 and 45,000 euros for those aged 30 and over.
Do I receive BAföG during an internship or semester abroad?
Compulsory internships are generally funded. Students who are entitled to BAföG in Germany are also supported abroad. The amount of funding depends on the destination country and the type and duration of the placement abroad. Depending on the destination country, different BAföG offices abroad are responsible. The application for funding abroad should be submitted at least six months before the start of the trip.
Important: It is also worth applying for funding abroad for students who are not entitled to BAföG in Germany due to their parents' income, as higher funding rates apply abroad.
Part-time jobs
If you have time to work while studying, take a look at the job offers on our career platform JOBS&MORE. Working student jobs offer you the opportunity to gain valuable practical experience and make company contacts while you are still studying. You will definitely benefit from this after you graduate. Also look out for advertisements from the Business School for student assistant positions (Hiwi positions), as these are very compatible with your studies due to the low number of hours. Some student assistant positions can be carried out remotely and are therefore very flexible. You can also use the job board of the Studierendenwerk Karlsruhe and the mini job advertisements of the AStA.
Sponsorship awards
What are sponsorship awards and who are they intended for?
Like scholarships, sponsorship awards are a type of financial support that does not have to be repaid and is aimed at outstanding students. As part of the Business School Pforzheim's so-called Preiszeit, sponsorship prizes are awarded each year in the summer semester to students who have achieved outstanding results. The prize sponsors include companies such as Ernst & Young, Robert Bosch GmbH, Jung von Matt, CONNECT Personal-Service and many more.
How can I receive a sponsorship award?
Students need to apply via Pforzheim University in order to be considered for a sponsorship award. Every year, prizes are offered by various sponsors, each with different evaluation criteria. Sponsorship prizes are awarded, for example, for outstanding project work or final theses with a variety of content-related focuses, impressive participation in student initiatives or particularly good academic achievements and social commitment.
What exactly is the Preiszeit?
Every year in the summer semester, the Business School Pforzheim organizes the award ceremony called Preiszeit at which the awards are officially presented. Students of the department who were able to impress with their currently relevant and high-quality project and final theses are honored by the prize donors during the ceremony.
In addition, the best Bachelor's and Master's students will also be inducted into the Beta Gamma Sigma academic honor society during the award period. Only the best students and graduates from the world's leading business schools belong to this international network.
Furthermore, the university holds an annual central awards ceremony at which students from all three faculties are recognized for their outstanding achievements. More information can be found here.
