Next Monday, 1 August, the nationwide university clearing system provided by the German Rectors' Conference will go live once again. This is where anyone who is looking for a study place for the upcoming autumn semester will find the ones not yet allocated by the universities.
The clearing system contains undergraduate and postgraduate degree programmes for which there are places still available. The universities post information not only about places on degree programmes with local admission restrictions but also on programmes with free access. The university clearing system provides a concise overview (“Wege zum Studium”) of the various admission procedures. For each degree programme there is a contact form that can be used by applicants to contact the respective university with regard to the specifics of admission.
The universities will be constantly updating the information provided over the next few weeks, the final application dates vary. This means it’s always worth checking back. From experience, the number of places on offer reaches a peak around mid-September when most of the regular admission procedures have come to an end. The clearing system closes at the end of October.
You can search for a place by subject and location. For each search result there are contact details for the university and links to pages that explain the admission requirements and deadlines. Access is free and no registration is required.
The nationwide university clearing system was developed by the German Rectors' Conference (HRK) and is offered as part of its Higher Education Compass. It is available at
http://www.hochschulkompass.de/studienplatzboerse or http://www.freie-studienplaetze.de (available in German only).
