After admission information for exchange students
AFTER ADMISSION
Admitted for an exchange semester: What's next?
This information is for exchange students with an admission letter issued by the International Office. If you have an invitation letter from a faculty supervisor but no admission letter, please contact us by email: exchange.incoming@uni-due.de
Important Information
Important Dates
Visa
EU Students
If you are an EU citizen or a citizen of Iceland, Liechtenstein or Norway, you will not need a visa to enter Germany.
Non-EU Students
You can use your admission letter to apply for a visa for study purposes from the German Embassy in your country.
Important: please do not enter Germany on a tourist visa. This type of visa expires after three months and cannot be extended or changed to a student visa.
Visa Regulations
Non-EU Students with an EU residence permit
If you are a non-EU national but you have a residence permit for the purpose of studying issued from an EU country, it is possible that you might not need to apply for a visa. Please email us a copy of both sides of your residence permit as soon as possible so that we can advise you.
Accommodation
Admission to higher education in Germany does not automatically come with an offer of a place in a student residence as is common in other countries. This means that you are responsible for organising your own accommodation.
There are different ways of finding a room or an apartment:
Student residences
There are student residences in Essen and Duisburg but they are not run by the University. If you want to live in the student residences, you need to apply by yourself to a student services organisation called “Studierendenwerk”. You can find further information and an explanation of the application procedure from the Studierendenwerk
Please note:
- Places in student residences are allocated on a first-come-first-served basis. Apply as early as possible and after you have received your letter of admission!
- there is no guarantee of accommodation in student residences so look also for alternatives
- exchange students will be assigned a room in shared flats
- rental agreements are only available for the entire semester
- rental agreements start on the first day of the month but you usually can't actually move in until the third working day of the month
- it will not be possible to cancel or change your contract after you have signed it
The Studierendenwerk also has a very useful FAQ section.
Private housing market
You can of course search on the private housing market for a furnished apartment/room or a place in shared accommodation (Wohngemeinschaft or “WG”).
Useful links for your housing search:
http://www.immobilienscout24.de/de/finden/wohnen/index.jsp
http://www.studenten-wohnung.de/
Important terms when you are looking for an apartment or room:
http://www.uni-due.de/scies/accommodation.shtml#glossary
http://www.uni-due.de/imperia/md/content/diversity/illu_wohnheimwoerterbuch.pdf
Health Insurance
It is compulsory for all students to have health insurance. It is not possible to enrol as a student without proof of valid health insurance.
The International Office cannot check your health insurance documents, we only accept a confirmation issued by a German health insurance provider "Krankenkasse". You should check your options below then contact any "Krankenkasse" and ask for a confirmation for enrolment at the University of Duisburg-Essen. You may be asked for our code: H0000277.
A summary of health insurance and contact details for some statutory health insurance companies can be found here, but this shouldn’t be considered as a recommendation and you are free to choose any other Krankenkasse.
The cost of statutory health insurance in Germany currently ranges between 125 and 150 euros per month.
You should arrange your health insurance confirmation "M10" by 14.02.2025 in order to complete enrolment before the start of the winter semester.
Enrolment
You must have your health insurance confirmation by 14.02.2025 so that we can process your enrolment before the end of March. We strongly advise that you complete enrolment before the end of September because you will need your university login to access the online orientation information and to apply for language classes.
We will normally process the enrolment and send you all of the enrolment documents by email within 14 days of receiving the confirmation of your health insurance.
Semester Contribution
Semester Ticket
Student Identity Card
Username (“Uni-Kennung”)
Student Certificate
Orientation Moodle
Support
Administration
The International Office can help with administrative questions or point you in the right direction if you are not sure who to ask!
Send us an email.
Academic Issues
Your UDE Factuly Coordinator should be your first contact for questions all academic issues including learning agreements, course selection and requirements.
Accommodation
If you apply for accommodation in the student residences, you should contact the Studierendenwerk directly for questions.
Ask a student
The International Student Activity and Assistance Club (ISAAC) is run by UDE students to help international students make the most of their time at the UDE. In mid-February a tutor will send you an email to introduce themselves. Exchange students are usually paired with a UDE Buddy student, a volunteer who will contact you mid-March and help you especially in your first weeks at the UDE.