HUWISU | Costs and Funding Opportunities

Overall costs for participating in the Humboldt Winter and Summer University
Coming to Germany as an international student is a big financial commitment and you need to consider carefully your financial expenses and living costs. Find out more about fees and funding possibilities when applying for the HUWISU program.

Study costs

Study costs consist of a one-off program fee & the respective course fee.
  • The program fee is 160 euros. This is a one-off fee i.e. charged only once irrespective of which course you take or the number of courses you take and it is non-refundable
  • The course fees for each course can be found on the respective course page. It is inclusive of:
    • Preparatory meeting (online)
    • Language/subject lessons
    • Lesson-related excursions
    • Cultural and leisure program
    • Teaching material for the course (analog and digital)
    • Access to PCs, the Internet and the university's own e-learning platform Moodle
    • Contact with student tutors during cultural activities and at the HUWISU office (Monday to Friday 9 am to 5 pm)

Other costs

In addition to the tuition fees, you should consider the following expenses when planning your studies at Humboldt Winter and Summer University:

  • Visa costs (depending on nationality)
  • Flight ticket (round trip)
  • Health and liability insurance
  • Accommodation
  • Other living expenses, e.g. food, phone, internet, activities.

You can find a helpful summary of the cost of living for students in Germany on the DAAD website.

Course changes or cancellations

You can change your course, free of cost (provided the new course is not full), up to four weeks before the course starts. After this period (until the start of the course), a course change fee of 50 euros is applicable. It is not possible to change courses after the course has started. It may be possible to switch between language courses if the course instructors of both the classes approve the switch.

A Cancellation is possible up to four weeks before the start of the course. You can do so by getting in touch with us over email. In such a case, participants will only receive a refund of the course fee (minus bank or credit card charges); the program fee will not be refunded. No refund is possible if the cancellation is made less than four weeks before the start of the course. Exceptions can be made in the event of acute illness before the start of the course (a medical certificate must be presented) or if the visa application is rejected. In the event of non-attendance or discontinuation of participation after the start of the program, there is no entitlement to a refund.

If fewer than six people register for a course, Humboldt-Universität may cancel a course (up to four weeks before the start of the course). Participants will be notified and informed of alternatives. If no satisfactory alternative is found, participation can be canceled free of charge (minus bank or credit card fees).

Discounts

  • If you have already taken part in a course at the Humboldt Winter and Summer University in the past, you will receive a 50 euro discount on the program fee.
  • If you take part in more than one course, you will receive a 50 euro discount on the course fee.
  • Students of a partner university of Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin receive a reduction of 50 euros on the program fee. In this case, please state the name of your university in the comments field.

Scholarships and Funding opportunities

Scholarships for participation in courses at the winter and summer universities are not awarded by Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, but by external institutions:

  • For detailed information on Santander Consumer Bank scholarships, please visit the Santander Open Academy database or contact the HUWISU Office.
  • The German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) also awards scholarships. Information on country-specific application deadlines and funding requirements can be found on the DAAD website. It is also highly recommended that you search the DAAD Scholarship Database and contact a DAAD office in your home country.
  • Some other sources that may provide information on country-specific funding include your home university, organizations in cooperation with Germany, scholarship databases of the Ministry of Education and other state institutions in your country of origin or country of residence.

The application deadlines usually differ from those of HUWISU, so please inform yourself six to eight months before the start of the course. HUWISU cannot help you with your scholarship application.

Payment methods

All fees must be paid in full in one payment. Registration only becomes effective once the full amount has been credited to Humboldt-Universität's account by the due date. Bank charges must be paid by the applicant. Upon confirmation of payment, your registration for the HUWISU program is binding.

By bank transfer
Please transfer the amount to:
Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin
Deutsche Bank PFK AG
Reference: Z.00072.00.426000 + Name of registering person + Course(es)
SWIFT/BIC: DEUTDEDB110
IBAN: DE95 1007 0848 0512 6206 01
Address of the bank:
Deutsche Bank PFK AG
Hardenbergstrasse 32
10623 Berlin
Tel.: +49 (0)30 310 90
By credit card
If you pay for your summer or winter course by credit card, please note that there is a three percent surcharge. Your data is always transmitted in encrypted form and is only stored on the servers in encrypted form. It goes without saying that your data will be treated as strictly confidential and used exclusively for processing your course payment in the International Department/Humboldt Winter and Summer University (HUWISU) and in the Budget Department of Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. Third parties have no access to your data.
Credit card payment process:
  1. After registering for the course, you will receive a confirmation e-mail with a payment request. Click on the link contained therein.
  2. You will be directed to an SSL-secured page where you can enter all the details required for the payment process (name, address, card number, expiration date, verification number). In your own interest, please ensure that payment with your credit card is possible. Then, confirm that you have entered your details correctly.
  3. We will now prepare your data for credit card collection, which will be carried out by the finance department. This process can take up to a week.
  4. The confirmation of your data entry, therefore, does not mean a successful payment transaction. As soon as the finance department can complete the payment collection, the HUWISU office will be informed, and we will send a payment confirmation to your e-mail address.