University in Germany
Frankfurt (Oder), Brandenburg, Germany
University profile
The European University Viadrina (Europa-Universität Viadrina) in Frankfurt (Oder), Brandenburg, is a small, interdisciplinary university on the German-Polish border, facing the Polish town of Słubice across the River Oder. Its mission centres on European questions, internationality and multilingual everyday life, and it describes itself as reform-oriented, interdisciplinary and engaged with society.
Teaching and research are organised in three faculties, the Faculty of Law (Juristische Fakultät), the Faculty of Cultural Sciences (Kulturwissenschaftliche Fakultät) and the Faculty of Business Administration and Economics (Wirtschaftswissenschaftliche Fakultät), together with the European New School of Digital Studies. Alongside them are the Collegium Polonicum in Słubice, run jointly with Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, and central research institutions: the Viadrina Center B/ORDERS IN MOTION, the Institute for Conflict Management and the Viadrina Center of Polish and Ukrainian Studies.
The degree portfolio comprises 26 degree programmes: nine undergraduate programmes (two of them dual and two bifaculty), 15 consecutive Master programmes, four fee-charging continuing-education Master programmes and six certificate and further-study programmes. Thirteen study programmes offer a total of 31 possible double degrees. Law (Staatsexamen) includes an integrated Bachelor of Laws and, from winter semester 2026/27, an integrated Master of Laws in German and European Law. Teaching languages include German, English, French, Polish and Ukrainian.
In August 2026 the university had 3,651 students, of whom 1,601 were international and 2,050 German. At the cross-border study location of Frankfurt (Oder) and Słubice, around 4,000 people from more than 100 countries study at the Viadrina and the Collegium Polonicum. The student services include the Studierendenwerk canteen and halls of residence, a sports club (Universitätssportclub Viadrina), student initiatives, and housing in either Frankfurt (Oder) or Słubice; Berlin is about an hour away by train.
International applicants apply through uni-assist for most programmes, and preparatory routes exist through the Viadrina College, language courses and the DSH preparation course. The university holds EMAS environmental certification and completed the Stifterverband Diversity Audit in 2021.
Every student pays a Semesterbeitrag: EUR 402.80 for new students and EUR 396.80 for re-enrolling students in winter semester 2026/27. It comprises EUR 100.00 Studierendenwerk contribution, EUR 19.00 student body contribution, EUR 51.00 enrolment or re-registration fee, EUR 226.80 compulsory Deutschlandsemesterticket and EUR 6.00 student card (new students only). Four continuing-education Master programmes (Compliance & Integrity Management, Mediation and Conflict Management, Protection of European Cultural Property, International Human Rights and Humanitarian Law) are fee-charging.
For newly enrolled students from Poland in Bachelor and consecutive Master programmes who have never studied at a German university: EUR 300 per month for 10 months, selected by a commission on Abitur or Bachelor grade and motivation letter. 2026/27 deadline: 30 September 2026.
Funded through DAAD for first-year Bachelor students from Armenia, Bulgaria, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Poland, Romania, Ukraine and Uzbekistan: EUR 450 per month from 1 October 2026 for the winter semester, possibly continued in summer. Deadline 30 September 2026; applications by email to [email protected] with entrance qualification, German proof, CV and motivation letter.
Merit-based awards, generally for one academic year, applied for online; the 2026/27 deadline was 27 May 2026.
Social scholarships (from the 3rd semester, for needy Polish students) and merit scholarships (from the 4th semester, for German and international students, including funds for students from Central and Eastern Europe) are financed mainly from donations; 2026/27 deadline was 27 May 2026. Humboldt Brothers Association supports up to five Polish or Ukrainian-German shared flats at EUR 100 to 200 per month for students in law-heavy programmes.
Contact: Scholarships and graduate funding, [email protected], +49 335 5534 4797. Official funding page.
Deutschlandstipendium at Viadrina →
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View scholarships for European University Viadrina Frankfurt (Oder) →Applicants need a German higher education entrance qualification (Hochschulzugangsberechtigung) or a foreign qualification that entitles them to study directly in Germany. Applicants with a German qualification apply and enrol online through the viaCampus portal. International applicants with a foreign qualification apply through uni-assist e.V. and do not send documents to the university; after a successful application the Admissions Office sends access to viaCampus for enrolment. Enrolment for a higher semester or with a Studienkolleg (Feststellungsprüfung) is handled directly with the university.
International applicants via uni-assist: winter semester 1 June to 15 July, summer semester 1 December to 15 January (summer semester only for Cultural Studies, International Business Administration and Law). Enrolment: 1 June to 15 September for winter semester and 1 December to 15 March for summer semester. Results are issued within six weeks of the deadline. Dual programmes, the German-Polish law programme and fee-charging continuing-education Master programmes have their own procedures and dates.
Higher education entrance qualification, language certificates, proof of health insurance, payment of the Semesterbeitrag and an identity document. Copies without official certification are accepted for application, translations must be by a sworn translator unless the original is in English or German.
German-taught programmes require level C1 of the Common European Framework before enrolment. Accepted proofs: DSH at least DSH-2, TestDaF at least TDN 4 in all four parts, DSD II at C1, Goethe-Zertifikat C2 (Grosses Deutsches Sprachdiplom; C1 is not sufficient), telc Deutsch C1 Hochschule with at least 172 points, a German Abitur or equivalent German-language secondary qualification, a completed German-language degree of at least six semesters at a German university, or a Studienkolleg Feststellungsprüfung. Certificates older than three years require a new proof or the DSH. The university offers a DSH preparation course and holds the DSH exam.
For English-taught programmes the requirement varies by programme. For the Master in International Business Administration the minimum is IELTS Academic 6.5 or the TOEFL iBT minimum for the programme (80 points until 20 January 2026; 4.5 on the new scale from 21 January 2026); graduates of Bachelor degrees from Australia, Ireland, Canada, Malta, New Zealand, South Africa, the UK or the USA are exempt.
A first professionally qualifying degree relevant to the programme is required, generally at least 180 ECTS credits or six full-time semesters; applicants close to completion may apply with a performance overview showing a provisional average grade. Programme-specific requirements are set on each programme page. International applicants to International Business Administration (M.Sc.), Digital Entrepreneurship (M.A.), Digital Studies (M.A.), Central and East European Studies, Conflict and Democracy, Language and Media Studies and Social Studies (M.A.) apply through uni-assist; all other Master programmes apply directly through viaCampus. Winter semester deadlines include 1 to 31 May for International Business Administration, Digital Entrepreneurship and Digital Studies and 1 June to 15 August for Conflict and Democracy; International Business Administration also admits for summer semester (1 to 30 November).
Doctoral candidates first find a professor willing to supervise and conclude a doctoral agreement (Promotionsvereinbarung); admission is then granted by the faculty doctoral committee under the faculty's Promotionsordnung (Law, Cultural Sciences, Business Administration and Economics). Structured doctorates run through doctoral programmes and research training groups. Under Brandenburg law doctoral candidates are normally enrolled. Enrolment window for doctoral candidates: 1 June to 15 October (winter) and 1 December to 15 April (summer).
Applicants with an indirect entrance qualification can prepare through the Viadrina College; the Viadrina Fast Track is a three-month preparatory course (Propädeutikum) for Cultural Studies or Business Studies, and the Viadrina Law Track Online prepares for the German-Polish law programme.
Student facilities include the Studierendenwerk canteen and cafeterias, halls of residence, the university sports club USC Viadrina offering dance, rowing, fitness, martial arts, ball sports and archery, and student initiatives and committees.
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