08 - Germany - Financial support for students

Students in the tertiary sector who have no other means (mainly from their parents' income) of maintenance and financing a course of study ( Bedarf) can also receive financial assistance under the terms of the Federal Training Assistance Act ( Bundesausbildungsförderungsgesetz– BAföG). Training assistance is predominantly granted to German students.

The duration for which such assistance is payable largely depends on the course of study chosen. As a rule, the assistance limit corresponds to the Regelstudienzeit (standard period of study) according to § 10 paragraph 2 of the Framework Act for Higher Education ( Hochschulrahmengesetz). If there is no such standard period of study or comparable stipulation, the assistance limits as specified in the Federal Training Assistance Act apply. From the fifth subject-related semester, students only continue to receive funding if they provide a certificate required for admission to examinations ( Leistungsnachweis). The amount of the assistance depends on the student's own income and financial means as well as those of his or her parents and spouse.

The financial assistance is also paid during non-lecture periods to meet students' requirements for that time. Since 1st April 2001, the full assistance available to students in higher education and at Berufsakademien not living with their parents has been up to Euro 585 per month (made up of Euro 466 for their maintenance and accommodation plus Euro 47 health insurance allowance, Euro 8 for long-term care insurance allowance and up to Euro 64 rent allowance). This maximum amount also applies to students at the Fachakademienin Bayern and to students at the so-called Höhere Fachschulen, which usually require a Mittlerer Schulabschluss and award a higher professional qualification as well as the Allgemeine Hochschulreife or Fachgebundene Hochschulreife in some cases. Half of the amount is provided over the maximum period for which assistance is payable as a non repayable grant, while the other half takes the form of an interest free state loan. Repayment terms for this state loan depend on social considerations and income. For study sections which have started after February 28, 2001, only a maximum amount of Euro 10,000 must be repaid. Once the maximal assistance period is exceeded, the students will only in certain special cases receive any further assistance, which is then provided in the form of an interest-bearing bank loan.

Since 2001, those students who, after their first two semesters of studies, have gone on to continue and possibly also complete their studies in another EU member state have been funded as well. Furthermore, simultaneously to the reform of the Federal Training Assistance Act in 2001, an Educational Credit Programme ( Bildungskreditprogramm) was introduced which, irrespective of any assistance under the Federal Training Assistance Act, supports pupils and students with Euro 300 per month for a period of up to 24 months. The so-called educational credit is also granted for studies abroad or for placements carried out as part of studies abroad and has to be repaid in full with interest. As part of the student loan programme of the Reconstruction Loan Corporation ( Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau– KfW), since 2006, students of any study course are offered a loan in order to finance cost of living to the amount of Euro 100 up to 650 per month, irrespective of their income or assets.

In addition to financial assistance provided under the Federal Training Assistance Act, there are other sources of funding available to students. In some Länder, for example, the student associations at the institutions of higher education or the institutions of higher education themselves provide loans of varying amounts in cases of extreme social need. Several smaller, predominantly regional foundations, which usually have private funds at their disposal, also provide needy students with assistance. The student loan systems developed by the Länder are an additional support system for the promotion of academic studies.

Particularly gifted students may receive a grant from relevant foundations (Begabtenförderungswerke). These foundations generally maintain close links with churches, political parties, trade unions or industry. One exception, however, is the Studienstiftung des deutschen Volkes(German National Scholarship Foundation), which does not adhere to any particular ideology and which is also Germany's largest foundation of its kind. The Federation supports the work of these foundations by providing substantial funding. The Länder contribute to the funding of the Studienstiftung des deutschen Volkes.The German Academic Exchange Service ( Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst –DAAD) offers grants for foreign students and up-and-coming academics and scientists to pursue studies or further education of limited duration at a German higher education institution. Alongside the DAAD, some Länder also have special funds for providing assistance to foreign students at the local institutions of higher education.

On completion of a first degree, students may also receive scholarships to support their further studies in line with the postgraduate assistance acts ( Graduiertenförderungsgesetze) and regulations of the Länder. The foundations for gifted students ( Begabtenförderungswerke) also provide students who have already completed a first degree with grants to enable them to study for a Promotion (doctorate).

In addition to the direct financial support available to students from low-income families, currently all students under the age of 27 benefit through the tax allowances to which their families are entitled and which are laid down in the German Income Tax and Child Benefit Acts. If students finish studying before their 27th birthday, the financial benefits enjoyed through their family come to an end with the end of the course of study. It is the parents and not the students themselves who are entitled to this form of support. Further indirect forms of financial assistance for students include reduced health insurance rates and the fact that time spent studying is partially acknowledged by the pension insurance authorities. From 2007, the age limit for receiving child benefit is lowered to 25.

Students in higher education are also protected by statutory accident insurance against accidents occurring at an institution of higher education or on the way between their home and the institution. It is the Länder that are responsible for statutory accident insurance for students.

Institutions:

Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst (DAAD)
Kennedyallee 50 53175 Bonn
Tel.:0228/882-0
Fax:0228/882-444
Website: http://www.daad.de

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