Prior to departure

Prior to travelling to Dresden, you should clarify a few important things:

• Where will I live in Dresden?
• Am I insured sufficiently for my stay in Germany?
• How will I travel to Dresden?
• How will I be supported at the university?
• Do I have sufficient language skills?
• Do I require a study visa?
• What financing will I require?
• Can I apply for a scholarship?

Living at the student residence

During your academic stay at Dresden University of applied sciences, you may live at the Dresden student services (Studentenwerk) student residence. Attention: Accommodations at the student residence shall only be permitted if you send your application for residence to the students services immediately after you have received your admission notice from Dresden University of Applied Sciences.

4 months minimum stay!

Please read the information provided by the student services thoroughly and send your application for residence and a copy of your admission notice to the following address:

Studentenwerk Dresden
Hauptabteilung Studentisches Wohnen
Fritz-Loeffler-Straße 18
D-01069 Dresden, Germany

You may also send scanned copies of these documents as an email attachment to: wohnen@swdd.tu-dresden.de

Extensive information and the application for residence is available on the student services homepage.

All information concerning your future residence, travel directions, and the rental agreement will be sent to you if your application is accepted by the student services (this notice is usually sent out via email).

If arrival is planned outside of a time specified by the students services, then we recommend the student services international guesthouse, a hotel, or a youth hostel in Dresden for the first night.

Students whose stay is shorter than four months may be accommodated in a room at the student services international guesthouse. Since the capacity of this guesthouse is limited, contact the department's support or the international office at Dresden University of Applied Sciences with regard to this. 

Health insurance

All students in Germany must possess health insurance.

• Students from countries within the European Union and the EFTA or students from countries with which Germany has developed a social insurance agreement: Please bring your European health insurance card or form E111 with you. This is available from your health insurance agent in your home country. After arrival in Dresden, please display this insurance card or form to a statutory insurance agency (z.B. AOK, Barmer, DAK, Techniker Krankenkasse). You will then receive a legal insurance certificate from this statutory German insurance agency, and this certificate must be presented during enrolment.
• Students from countries that do not belong to the European Union or to EFTA: After arrival in Dresden, you must be insured immediately by a statutory insurance agency (z.B. AOK, Barmer, DAK, Techniker Krankenkasse). (Monthly insurance contributions amount to approx. € 55). More detailed information is available from the international office after arrival.

We recommend acquiring travel insurance for your trip to Germany as well as for your trip back to your homeland.

Please also check prior to beginning your academic stay if your private insurance possesses sufficient coverage in case of any accident (e.g. in case of property damage or personal injury to third parties and in case of accidents or theft).

Arriving in Dresden

Dresden may be reached by air as well as by train:

Arrival by plane

• Dresden airport:
• trip time with the S-Bahn (S 2) to Hauptbahnhof (central train station) Dresden: 21 minutes, cost: approx. € 2
• Taxi: approx. 30 minutes, cost: approx. € 25

• Berlin airport:
• trip time by train to Dresden Hauptbahnhof from Berlin to Dresden: approx. 2 hours, cost: approx. € 30

• Leipzig/Halle airport:
• trip time by train to Dresden Hauptbahnhof from Leipzig to Dresden: approx. 2 hours, cost: approx. € 28

Arrival by train
Destination: Dresden Hauptbahnhof

Dresden University of Applied Sciences is located at Friedrich-List-Platz 1, directly within view of Hauptbahnhof (approx. 5 minutes by foot). Take the south exit.

Support from the student initiative 'faranto e.V.'

faranto e.V. is a student organisation that accompanies and supports international students at Dresden University of Applied Sciences. Prior to arriving in Dresden, students from the different faculties of Dresden University of Applied Sciences will contact you, pick you up from the train station or airport, and accompany you to various offices. The students involved in faranto e.V. are available to you to answer questions concerning student life.

Language proficiency

As an exchange student, you are obligated to prove your German skills with a certificate. The necessary level of German proficiency depends significantly on your academic goals in Dresden. This means:

• Students who would like to attend standard courses/lectures will require good to very good German language skills, since these courses are mainly offered in German.
• Students who are working on a programme or research project together with a departmental professor from Dresden University of Applied Sciences, on their thesis (e.g. diploma thesis, bachelor's thesis, master's thesis), or their dissertation should please discuss what language proficiency is required for their project prior to their official application at the university with the responsible professor. Depending on the subject, students may also receive support in a foreign language (e.g. English, Russian).

Visa

Students from countries in the European Union and EFTA
You do not require a visa to enter Germany. A valid passport or personal identification is sufficient.

Students from countries that are not in the European Union or EFTA
You require a visa for your stay in Germany for academic purposes. This visa must be applied for at the German foreign representative within your home country. Do not travel to Germany without acquiring this visa first!

The following conditions must be fulfilled beforehand in order to receive a student visa:

1. Permission to study at a German university
2. Proof of sufficient funds must also be supplied.

More information is also available on the homepage of the Federal Foreign Office and from the German mission in your home country.

Financing

Please note that you will require approximately € 400 directly after arriving in Dresden for the following items:

Semester fees:
All students must pay a semester fee of approx. € 165 for enrolment at Dresden University of Applied Sciences (for the student services, students' organisation, semester ticket, etc.). The semester fees do not cover enrolment or programme fees. The semester fees include the semester ticket, etc. The semester ticket enables free use of public transit in Dresden (bus, tram line) and in the immediate area around Dresden (train).

Rent:
In the initial days after your arrival in Dresden, you will be required to pay the first month's rent and a deposit for your accommodations. For further information, please contact the student services in Dresden.     

Living costs:
Living costs depend upon particular rental costs and your individual lifestyle. Overall, you should expect monthly costs of approximately € 500.

Please bring a certification of your ERASMUS scholarship. This is required when you register at the local aliens' authority.

If you have not received an ERASMUS scholarship from your home university, please inform yourself at your university's international department to see if you are entitled to apply for a scholarship at Dresden University of Applied Sciences.

After arriving in Dresden

Enrolment and confirmation

Enrolment
In order to be able to enroll at Dresden University of Applied Sciences, the following certificates will be required:

• Payment of semester fees
• Health insurance

Students of all faculties other than economics must register after arriving with theInternational Office Friedrich-List-Platz 1, room Z 233

Students of the faculty of economics must register after arriving at the
International Office of the Faculty of Economics
Friedrich-List-Platz 1, room Z 605

The respective international office will provide you with your enrolment documents and a notice to transfer/pay which you may use to pay your semester fees in cash at a bank. Please note that receipt of the money shall only be registered at Dresden University of Applied Sciences after approx. 10 working days. As soon as payment of the semester fee is received by HTW Dresden and proof of health insurance (registration or exemption) has been submitted to the international office, you will receive your student ID card from the students' office at room Z 220.
This student ID card is simultaneously your library card, transit ticket (with valid semester stamp), and access card for the university parking area and selected laboratory areas.

Confirmation
Students who intend to study in Dresden for longer than one semester must confirm their second semester in good time. Confirmation of further studies takes place after payment of the semester fee within the confirmation period.

Don't forget to update the stamp on your student ID card with the card printer!

Departmental support

As an exchange student, you will receive a TA for the duration of your academic stay at Dresden University of Applied of Applied Science (professor of the corresponding faculty) who will support you with all of your academic problems. Your teaching assistant will help you with all questions regarding your programme at Dresden University of Applied Sciences (learning agreement), registration and participation in tests, concerning testing results (transcript of records), as well as clarification of departmental problems and solutions.

Preparatory course

Dresden University of Applied Sciences hosts a week-long preparatory course for international students at the beginning of each semester. This integration course includes an evaluation test for the accompanying German language course, all administrative official procedures, excursions in Dresden and the surrounding area, and meetings with German students.

Rental contract

If you will be staying at a student residence or in the international guesthouse of the student services, then you will have to sign a rental agreement with the student services.

Academic stay longer than 4 months:
Studentenwerk Dresden
Abteilung Wohnen
Fritz-Loeffler-Strasse 18
01069 Dresden, Germany
Zimmer 115
Telephone: +49 (0)351 469 7615
Email: wohnen@swdd.tu-dresden.de

All information concerning this rental agreement is available to you once permission to stay has been received (normally via email) from the student services. The requirement for this is that you have applied for a room in the residence.

Academic stay less than 4 months:
Register at the international guesthouse office, 01069 Dresden, Hochschulstrasse 50 (registration takes place as organised with a departmental assistant at Dresden University of Applied Sciences).

Central passport and registration office

You must register at the local passport and registration office in Dresden within 14 days of arriving. Registration takes place at

Ortsamt Altstadt
Theaterstrasse 11
01067 Dresden
Telephone: +49 (0)351 488 6070

Opening hours:
Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday: 8:00 a.m. - 8:00 p.m.
Wednesday: 2:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.
Saturday: 8:00 - 1:00 p.m.

Registration with a statutory health insurance agency

All students in Germany must possess health insurance.

• Students from countries within the European Union and the EFTA or students from countries with which Germany has developed a social insurance agreement: Please bring your European health insurance card or form E111 with you. This is available from your health insurance agent in your home country. After arrival in Dresden, please display this insurance card or form to a legally appointed insurance agency (z.B. AOK, Barmer, DAK, Techniker Krankenkasse). You will then receive a legal insurance certificate from this legally appointed German insurance agency, and this certificate must be presented during enrolment.
• Students from countries that do not belong to the European Union or to EFTA: After arrival in Dresden, you must be insured immediately by a legally appointed insurance agency (z.B. AOK, Barmer, DAK, Techniker Krankenkasse). (Monthly insurance contributions amount to approx. € 55). More exact information is available from the international office after arrival.

We recommend acquiring travel insurance for your trip to Germany as well as for your trip back to your homeland.

Please bring your passport or personal ID card with the rental contract. Please maintain a copy of your registration certificate. You will require this certificate to open a bank account (among other things).

Opening a bank account

A giro account at a bank in Dresden is required to pay rent due for accommodation.
Please take your passport, a personal ID card, and the registration certificate from the passport and registration office.
Administrative fees for this account are normally waived upon presentation of your student ID card.

Aliens' authority

If you intend on staying in Dresden for longer than three months, then you must indicate this to the aliens' authority office in order to apply for a residency permit.

Aliens' Authority Dresden
Theaterstrasse 13
01067 Dresden
Telephone: (+49 351) 488 6451

Opening hours:
Tuesday, Thursday: 8:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. and 2:00 - 6.00 p.m.
Friday: 8:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.

Please bring:

• Residency permit application (available from the aliens' authority)
• Passport + copy
• Rental contract + copy
• Health insurance certificate
• Registration certificate from passport and registration office + copy
• Enrolment certificate from Dresden University of Applied Sciences
• Proof of funds for sustaining living expenses (not necessary for EU students)
• Certificate of ERASMUS scholarship (only for ERASMUS students)
• 2 passport photos

Completion of academic stay

Please apply for a transcript of records with your supporting professor in good time.
Prior to departing, please make sure that you register with:

• the university library (please return any books you have borrowed!)
• the bank (to close your account)
• the central passport and registration office