International International

On average, students in Germany have to cover monthly expenses of €819. Most international students are not entitled to German state student finance (BAföG). Furthermore, only about 53 per cent of them receive financial support from their families; the figure for German students is 88 per cent.

Parents who can support their children to study in Germany tend to be among the more comfortably-off in their country, but even they often struggle to cover all the costs of studying in an industrialised country. In 2016, per capita gross national income in Germany was US$43,490, contrasting with US$1,454 in sub-Saharan Africa and $7,246 in North Africa and the Middle East. (Source: World Bank 2018). If a family is unable to continue supporting their student child due to financial difficulties or other factors, many students find themselves forced to abandon their studies.

Sources: 20^th Social Survey, Deutsches Studentenwerk, 2012; 21^st Social Survey, 2016

Approximately three-quarters of all students in Hamburg do part-time work to help fund their studies. Both German and international students rely on income from jobs, but international students are rarely able to access long-term, better-paid opportunities. Additionally, non-EU/-EEA students are limited to 120 full or 240 half days of work per year. This means that many international students are forced to visit state job centres on a daily basis in the hope of getting one of the few one-day job opportunities available. This constant job search takes time and effort away from their studies.

It is virtually impossible for these students to attain a secure income from this irregular, low-paid work, which may render them unable to pay the rent or their health insurance premiums and force them – if nobody helps – to give up their studies.

In the early 1980s, students, staff and friends of HAW Hamburg (known then as the Fachhochschule Hamburg), founded the Verein der Förderer Ausländischer Studierender e.V. (VDFAS) with the goal of providing speedy, uncomplicated assistance to international students who find themselves in financial difficulties through no fault of their own.

Since then, the association has helped several hundred international students with short-term grants to cover costs such as rent or health insurance, enabling them to continue their studies.

The VDFAS is proud of having helped many students in its history so far, but more and more students need us and our funds are limited. Regrettably, we currently have to turn away some of the students who apply for our assistance. With your help, we can provide support to more of those who need it. But we want our support for international students to go beyond one-off payments to meet acute need. In the medium term, we would like to provide funding for high-performing international students over a period of months, freeing them up to focus on preparing for exams without having to worry about money, and thus helping them successfully complete their degrees.

The International Office at HAW Hamburg manages the association’s emergency fund on a voluntary basis; 100 per cent of your membership fee or donation goes directly to helping international students. When we receive an application for support, we discuss the applicant’s entire situation in depth with them, ensuring we can assist them with any other issues affecting their degree course. We need membership fees and donations to carry on this valuable work.

You can become a member for as little as €5 per month. Simply complete the form on the back of this flyer and send it to us or email us at vdfas (at) haw-hamburg (dot) de. We will be happy to send you further information.

We are always pleased to receive donations to the following account:

Verein der Förderer VDFAS e.V.
IBAN: DE61 206 9050000 00608122
Sparda-Bank Hamburg eG.