Information for existing & new students at KIT with refugee/migrant status

Tips for new students at KIT

If you are new to KIT, you certainly have many questions. Here are some tips & contacts that might be able to help you:
You are also welcome to visit our consulting office for refugees or send us an e-mail:
daniela.rueden∂kit.edu or ola.omar9∂kit.edu.

 

Consulting office for refugees at KIT

We are happy to advise you on basic questions about studying in Germany in general or especially about studying here at KIT:
Evaluation of degrees, admission and study requirements, study opportunities, study preparation offers and procedures, offers for refugees at KIT, financing of studies.
Place and time: see info box on the right.
 

Counseling and information for students with a refugee background at KIT

Several times per semester, students enrolled at KIT with refugee status are invited to information events. Topics include funding possibilities, internships and many other topics that are frequently asked by the students themselves. Invitations will be sent by email to registered students. If you are interested, please contact Daniela von Rüden.
 

Tandem program „Pelican“

The work group "Engagement for Refugees" at the Institute for German Studies offers the tandem program "Pelican" (Personal Intercultural Academic Network). Pelican provides tandems of one student and one refugee, who already worked in his/her home country in an academic environment or who is interested in studying at KIT. Through interacting and intercultural exchange, the linguistic competence of the refugees improve, and longer-term encounters with natives are also possible.
 

Buddy-Program for international students with and without refugee background

The International Students Office (IStO), in cooperation with the Refugee Integration Coordination and the House of Competence (HoC), is offering a  Buddy-Programm for international students with and without a refugee background. In this case, a student of KIT will assist international students enrolling for a bachelor’s or master’s degree programs for one semester, if possible from the same degree program. This contact person is available for all questions and topics that arise in everyday student life. The buddy teams will be accompanied during the semester by the refugee coordination and the IStO and, if requested, at the HoC ECTS-accredited events on the topic of intercultural competence. The Buddy Program provides international students with an additional offer of faculty mentoring programs.
 

Scholarships for refugees

Scholarships provide support to gifted students or students in need, in some cases also taking into account the specific circumstances of the refugee situation. Many institutions offer support, including the DAAD, party foundations and business-related organizations. They select their scholarship holders primarily on the basis of academic, social and character traits and assure them a defined financial and often also idealistic support. There are also subject-specific scholarships awarded by research institutions, companies or private individuals.

Here is a short list with selected scholarships:

Social counseling for students with a refugee background

For questions about studying, BAföG, housing search and more, the Studierendenwerk Karlsruhe offers advice for students with a refugee background (German, English, French, Arabic) as part of the "Welcome" program of the DAAD.
 

TestAS for refugees at KIT

Der TestAS is a study ability test that examines the general and professional suitability for studying at a university. It helps refugees to study or continue their studies in Germany and can be written once free of charge in German, English or Arabic. Universities use TestAS individually or in conjunction with the free examination procedure for refugees from Uni-Assist. In addition, TestAS is an important part of the application for some scholarships.
If you are interested, please contact Daniela von Rüden to register yourself.

 

EduRef - Education for Refugees e.V. 

EduRef is a non-profit association from Karlsruhe and a university group at KIT. Their goal is to provide free education for refugees, especially in the IT sector.
The courses comprise of Java programming courses for both beginners and advanced as well as Microsoft Office for beginners.
 

bunt - Karlsruhe

bunt is a cooperation of diverse organizations – among them KIT - that are active in the region of Karlsruhe. 18 institutions with volunteers and full-time employees from various fields of work decided to cooperate together in order to improve and expand their network and their diverse range of activities to be able to present them more clearly to the outside world. With this cooperation, bunt aims to contribute to better support for refugees in Karlsruhe. The website offers the following categories: education, work, help services, leisure and accommodation.
 

INTL Website for refugees