Frequently asked questions about applying
For admission to most subjects, you can apply directly on the University of Freiburg’s online application portal. There you will be directed to the proper course of action, depending on the type of degree you wish to pursue and your personal situation (first semester application, higher subject-specific semester, German higher education entrance qualification, non-German higher education entrance qualification, etc.).
The subjects Medicine, Pharmacy, and Dentistry are exceptions to this rule. For admission to these subjects, you must apply on www.hochschulstart.de.
For admission to subjects included in the dialogue-oriented service procedure (DoSV), you must first register at https://www.hochschulstart.de/startseite/portal before completing your application on the University of Freiburg’s online portal.
The application period for applicants who earned their university entrance qualification in the previous year applies only to applications submitted to hochschulstart.de and only to the subjects Medicine, Pharmacy, and Dentistry. You can find the current application periods below.
No. The end of the application period for subjects with admission restrictions or special prerequisites for admission is a binding deadline.
This means that we unfortunately cannot consider any application documents submitted after the application deadline.
Only in the case of an application submitted on time for admission to a higher semester is it possible to submit certificates of completion and graded assessments earned during the semester later (by no later than 20 September for the winter semester and no later than 20 March for the summer semester).
Yes, because then you can receive preferential admission in a subsequent application process by means of preselection in accordance with §30 of the University Admissions Regulations (Hochschulzulassungsverordnung – HZVO). Provided that you have already been admitted to a degree programme with restricted admission at the beginning of or during the voluntary service, you can lay claim to this place again in a later selection process (in the second process after you were admitted at the latest). To do so, you must apply again in the later selection process and upload your certificate of service and your letter of acceptance from the prior selection process.
Applications for admission to a master’s programme should be submitted on the online application portal. In master of science or master of arts degree programmes, the application documents are checked first by the respective academic department and then by the Service Center Studium, which then decides on whether to grant admission. The Service Center Studium has exclusive responsibility for the Master of Education Teaching Degree programme and the Master of Education – Additional Subject degree programme. For more information on the individual master’s degree programmes, see the degree programme finder.
More information on teaching degree programmes is also available on the website of the School of Education .
You can apply using your student account on HISinOne. The conditions for applying and receiving admission to a master’s programme are regulated by the individual academic departments. If you have any questions, please contact the relevant departmental academic advisor.
For more information on the master’s programmes offered, see the degree programme list.
You can re-register for the undergraduate degree programme during the re-registration period even if the application process has not yet been completed. You can re-register by bank transfer, direct debit mandate, or in person with your debit card (girocard). If your final examination for the undergraduate degree programme has already been entered in HISinOne, you will not be re-registered. In this case, the fees will be saved to your account.
After the end of the official re-registration period, all students who have not re-registered are automatically disenrolled by administrative degree. If this happens during the application process for a master’s programme, your disenrolment will be cancelled after admission.
As soon as you have received your letter of acceptance for the master’s programme, you can apply for a change of subject/degree programme to change to the master’s programme. Please submit the application form to the Registration Office.
The relevant deadline is printed on your letter of acceptance. You must and should not disenrol in order to change from an undergraduate degree programme to a master’s programme. However, as long as you have not been admitted to the master’s programme and therefore cannot apply for a change of subject/degree programme, your re-registration for the following semester may not be completed. You will only be re-registered for the next semester when you perform the change of subject/degree programme. Your student ID number and your student account remain the same.
More information on how to apply for a teaching degree programme (Polyvalent Dual-Major Bachelor’s degree and Master of Education and Master of Education extension subject) can be found here:
For more information about the meaning and structure of the various degrees you can pursue at the University of Freiburg, please consult the degrees page.
As a rule, admission restrictions are determined shortly before the application period begins. An overview of all subjects that currently have admission restrictions can be found in the corresponding information leaflets at the document centre.
To apply for admission to a degree programme without special conditions for admission (open admission), you have to submit your documents on the University of Freiburg Application Portal and also complete an online application for enrolment. In this case, you will not be issued a letter of acceptance.
EU nationals and nationals of EEA member states without German higher education entrance qualification must apply for admission to a degree programme with open admission on the University of Freiburg Application Portal and also receive a letter of acceptance with which they can enrol on the portal.
You can submit a maximum of three applications each for admission to undergraduate degree programmes, higher subject-specific semesters, and master’s programmes with restricted admission. Applications for degree programmes without restricted admission (open admission) are not subject to this limit.
Applicants who are not nationals of an EU/EEA member state and/or do not have a German Abitur certificate cannot participate in the lottery.
Lotteries are conducted in degree programmes with restricted admission in which not all places were accepted. If places are still open after the last procedure for subsequent admissions, they are granted in a lottery.
Applications for participation in the lottery must be made online and separately for each desired degree programme. The application period for the winter semester is each year from 1 to 30 September, that for the summer semester each year from 1 to 31 March. Applications submitted outside of these periods will not be considered.
The online application portal for the lottery is only open during the periods listed above.
Applications for participation in the lottery must be submitted online. Applicants are only notified if a letter of acceptance was issued. Notifications of exclusion or letters rejection are not issued.
With qualification to study at a university of applied sciences, you meet the entrance requirements for a university of applied sciences but not for a university in Baden-Württemberg.
Subject-restricted higher education entrance qualification (with evidence of one foreign language) qualifies you for admission to particular degree programmes at a university (which are named in your school-leaving certificate).
Under certain conditions, applicants with vocational qualification can receive higher education entrance qualification even without an Abitur.
Waiting semesters can play a role for subjects with restricted admission. Your chances of being admitted to a subject with restricted admission are better if you can provide evidence of waiting semesters. They depend on the date you earned your higher education entrance qualification (Abitur).
Each full half year (1 April to 30 Sept. of one year and 1 Oct. to 31 March of the next year) that has passed since you earned your higher education entrance qualification or Abitur and in which you were not enrolled at a university in Germany counts as a waiting semester. These semesters since the date of your higher education entrance qualification count automatically as waiting time. You can have up to seven half years taken into account as waiting time.
Letters of acceptance and rejection for the winter semester are issued between mid-August at the earliest and the end of October/November (this refers to letters of rejection in particular). The enrolment period is stated in the letter of acceptance.
Information on enrolment is provided in the letter of acceptance.
If you are unable to enrol in person, e.g. due to absence, you may give a person you trust (e.g. a parent or sibling) written power of attorney to carry out your enrolment for you. Please include the power of attorney as well as a copy of the identity card of the person authorized to act on your behalf with the enrolment documents.
Classes begin in October and in April.
The orientation events generally begin one week before the start of the official lecture period. As a beginning student, you will receive information on the events to be held in the orientation week directly from your department or faculty. If you have any questions, please call the Service Center Studium hotline at +49 761 203 4246.
In the winter semester, you can plan your orientation week with the help of the ‘myUFR’ app. More information at
More information is available at
If you wish to take up your studies at the University of Freiburg upon completing your service, you must apply again during the relevant application period and submit an application for preselection.
Preselection means that applicants who have completed one of the following forms of service or care work are preselected for admission to a degree programme if they were admitted to it by the University of Freiburg itself or by hochschulstart.de during or after beginning their service or care work and were therefore not able to accept the place in the degree programme at the time:
- voluntary military service, military service of up to 3 years
- civilian service or civilian service abroad in accordance with § 14 b of the Civilian Service Act (Zivildienstgesetz – ZDG)
- a voluntary social year, a voluntary ecological year, service in the European Solidarity Corps, international youth voluntary service, Federal Volunteers Service, or service in the funding programmes Weltwärts and Kulturweit [de] of at least six months’ duration
- at least two years of service as a development aid volunteer
- up to three years supporting or caring for a biological/adopted child under 18 years of age or another relative in need of care
You will need to upload a certificate of service and a copy of the original letter of acceptance with your application.
No, because it is only possible to enrol with a complete combination of subjects.
If you wish to enrol, you must also select a major or a minor subject with open admissions.