According to the numerus clausus check by the Centre for Higher Education Development (CHE), a total of 35.2 percent of degree programmes in Germany had restricted admissions in the winter semester 2024/2025. To ensure your application is successful, you should be familiar with the various admission procedures. You can find the most important information in this chapter.
Official Study Guide for Germany
Application & Admission
Do I have to apply for a degree programme?
You already know what subject you want to study? Great! Now it's time to find out whether you need to apply - and if so, what the procedure is.
Foto: Hans-Martin Issler
Admission restrictions - local or nationwide?
There are always admission restrictions if the number of applications (significantly) exceeds the number of places available on a degree programme at a university. In such cases, a local admission restriction is introduced based on the ratio of the number of applicants to available study places.
Places on the following degree programmes are limited at all state universities in Germany.
- Human medicine
- Dentistry
- Veterinary medicine
- Pharmacy
This is referred to as a nationwide admission restriction.
Regardless of whether it is a local or nationwide admission restriction: You must apply for a study place in any case (see section 4.2: ‘Where do I have to apply for a degree programme?’).
Topics
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‘NC’ is the abbreviation for “Numerus clausus”, which means “closed number” in English. The NC is used in selection procedures when the number of applications exceeds the number of available study places. The average A-level grade… -
For degree programmes with admission restrictions, you must apply for a study place - either directly to the university OR via hochschulstart.de, the application portal of the Stiftung für Hochschulzulassung (SfH). -
You will find out whether or not you have been successful in gaining a place at university by means of an admission letter or rejection letter. It is understandable that a rejection is unpleasant. However, acceptances can also be…
What applies to open-admission degree programmes?
In open-admission degree programmes, you often only need your university entrance qualification and can enrol directly at the start of the semester. Requirements such as an application, pre-registration or aptitude test are usually not necessary. However, as it can happen that an application or at least pre-registration is also required for degree programmes without admission restrictions - sometimes even via the hochschulstart.de portal - you should always find out from your university in good time whether and by what deadline you need to submit documents.
In addition, although a degree programme is generally admission-free, admission may be subject to certain requirements (e.g. language skills). As a rule, these must be fulfilled upon enrolment, but it is not uncommon for the relevant qualification to be obtained within the first few semesters through separate courses on site. Here too, the universities are the best source of information.
And what does enrolment (matriculation) mean?
Enrolment, also known as matriculation, is the decisive step that officially makes you a student. Regardless of whether your degree programme is admission-free or you have been granted admission: You can only start your degree programme once you have completed enrolment.
Enrolment takes place directly at your university. Depending on the requirements, you can enrol online, by post or in person. Find out in good time about the relevant procedures and deadlines at your university. To enrol, you usually need to submit the following documents in full and on time:
- Identity card or passport
- University entrance qualification
- Possible letter of authorisation
- Proof of health insurance
- Proof of payment of the semester fee