University in Germany
Magdeburg, Sachsen-Anhalt, Germany
University profile
Otto von Guericke University Magdeburg (Otto-von-Guericke-Universität Magdeburg, OVGU) is a state university in Magdeburg, the capital of Saxony-Anhalt. It was founded in 1993 by merging the Technical University of Magdeburg, the Magdeburg College of Education and the Medical Academy, and takes its name from Otto von Guericke, the 17th-century Magdeburg scientist whose name stands for applied scientific method, innovation and social responsibility. The university describes itself as a profile university with traditional strengths in engineering, natural sciences and medicine, complemented by economics, social sciences and humanities.
Teaching and research are organised in nine faculties: Mechanical Engineering (Maschinenbau), Process and Systems Engineering (Verfahrens- und Systemtechnik), Electrical Engineering and Information Technology (Elektrotechnik und Informationstechnik), Computer Science (Informatik), Mathematics (Mathematik), Natural Sciences (Naturwissenschaften), Medicine (Medizin), Human Sciences (Humanwissenschaften) and Economics and Management (Wirtschaftswissenschaft). The university offers 47 Bachelor programmes and 57 Master programmes, including teacher education, and doctoral and habilitation routes.
The campus is organised around three sites: Campus Universitätsplatz, Campus Zschokkestraße and the Medical Campus. The campus includes lecture halls, the university library, canteens and cafeterias, and student halls of residence. Sport courses are run by the university sports centre, and students can take part in student initiatives, faculty student councils, cultural groups and university politics.
The university is strongly international. In winter semester 2025/26 it enrolled 13,121 students, of whom 5,315 were international students. It reports more than 300 partnerships with 245 institutions in 60 countries and about 11 per cent of teaching staff from abroad. The English-language programme list contains 24 programmes (4 Bachelor and 20 Master), and some programmes are taught in both German and English. The Campus Welcome Center acts as the central service point for applicants and students, and the International Office advises international students.
Magdeburg is a member of the European university alliance EU GREEN, the first university in Saxony-Anhalt to join this network of nine European universities. The university is a member of the German Research Foundation (DFG) since 1999 and of GATE Germany. No tuition fees are charged for a first degree; only the semester contribution is payable.
No tuition fees are charged for a first degree at OVGU; the semester contribution (Semesterbeitrag) is the only compulsory charge and is not tuition. For winter semester 2026/27 it is EUR 329.30, made up of EUR 90.00 for the Studentenwerk Magdeburg, EUR 226.80 for the Deutschlandsemesterticket and EUR 12.50 for the student council. Fees apply for a second degree, guest students and students over 60 under the university's fee regulations; exemption and instalment applications are possible.
The university awards scholarships every winter and summer semester to students, for at least two semesters at EUR 300 per month. The Deutschlandstipendium rewards outstanding academic performance and social commitment and is funded half by the federal government and half by companies and private donors. The company scholarship (Unternehmensstipendium) is advertised by regional businesses, which set their own criteria such as programme or subject area and take part in selecting recipients. The university also points to a family scholarship for students with children. Contact: Relationship Management, Media, Communications and Marketing, +49 391 67-58835. Official scholarship page.
Doctoral candidates can apply for a scholarship under the Saxony-Anhalt Graduate Support Act (Graduiertenförderungsgesetz). Enrolment as a doctoral candidate at OVGU is mandatory for the duration of the funding, so admission to doctoral studies must be applied for at the latest in the month of the scholarship application. Extensions must be requested at least eight weeks before the funding ends. Graduate scholarship page.
BAföG (state student aid, for eligible students) is applied for through the Studentenwerk Magdeburg; half of the support must be repaid, up to a maximum of EUR 10,010. Study loans are available through the Studentenwerk, and the university supports applications for external foundations and funding organisations. The university also publicises DAAD final-degree scholarships for international students (STIBET). Study financing overview | Semester contribution and fees.
Deutschlandstipendium at Otto von Guericke University Magdeburg →
OVGU Unternehmensstipendium (Company Scholarship) →
INGa Scholarship for Women (Faculty of Process and Systems Engineering) →
Christine Bessenrodt Scholarship (Faculty of Mathematics) →
Browse the scholarships listed for Otto von Guericke University Magdeburg and check each award’s eligibility.
View scholarships for Otto von Guericke University Magdeburg →Applicants need a higher education entrance qualification (Hochschulzugangsberechtigung, HZB), mainly a school-leaving certificate; depending on the home country a few semesters of study at home may also be required. Whether admission is possible is decided only after the full documents are checked. Programmes without admission restriction guarantee a place to every applicant who meets the requirements and applies on time; admission-restricted programmes (N.C.) select applicants by ranking. Bachelor Psychology (first semester) and Medicine are applied for through Hochschulstart, for winter semester only.
Applicants with a German entrance qualification apply through the myOVGU portal. All applicants who gained their entrance qualification or Master entrance qualification abroad apply through uni-assist e.V., which checks the documents and language evidence and forwards positive results to the university; the university then needs about four weeks for the admission decision. Applicants from India, China and Vietnam add the APS certificate from the Academic Evaluation Centre in New Delhi, Beijing or Hanoi. Direct application to the university applies to, among others, teacher education, doctoral candidates and graduates who earned their Bachelor in Germany.
General application periods at the university: winter semester (start 1 October) 15 May to 15 September for programmes without restriction and 15 May to 15 July for admission-restricted programmes; summer semester (start 1 April) 15 December to 15 March and 15 December to 15 January respectively. Several Master programmes (Data and Knowledge Engineering, Digital Engineering, European Studies, Peace and Conflict Studies, Visual Computing) close earlier for winter semester 2026/27, on 15 July 2026. Through uni-assist the general deadlines are 15 July for winter semester and 15 January for summer semester, with earlier deadlines for individual Master programmes (for example 15 May for Visual Computing and Digital Engineering, and 15 June for Biomechanical Engineering, Systems Engineering for Manufacturing and Performance Analysis of Sport, for the winter semester). The uni-assist portal normally opens on 15 April and 15 October. Documents required include the secondary school certificate with grades and subjects in the original language and a certified translation into German or English, proof of study years completed elsewhere, any entrance examination and Feststellungsprüfung certificate, and a language certificate.
Applicants whose prior education does not allow direct study attend a Studienkolleg and pass the Feststellungsprüfung, normally after one preparatory year in a T, W, M or G/S course (technical, economics and social sciences, medical and biological, humanities and languages). Entry requires an entrance test and German at B2. Applicants for OVGU usually attend the Landesstudienkolleg at Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg; three private Studienkollegs operate in Magdeburg. The university does not offer German courses for study preparation.
Most programmes are taught in German. Accepted evidence includes DSH-2 (DSH-3 for selected programmes such as Human Medicine), TestDaF 4 in all four parts (TDN 5 for selected programmes), DSD II, Goethe-Zertifikat C2, telc C1 Hochschule (grade good or very good), ÖSD C2, UNIcert IV and the OVGU Language Centre C1 certificate with a mean better than 3.3. Applicants with C1 evidence are invited to the DSH examination, held in March and September; the examination lasts two days and costs EUR 80. B2 is the minimum for entering a Studienkolleg. Holders of the German Abitur, a German Bachelor taught in German or a passed Feststellungsprüfung are exempt from a German language certificate.
For English-taught programmes evidence is normally required at B2 or C1: TOEFL iBT 85 (B2) or 95 (C1), IELTS 6.5 (B2) or 7.0 (C1), Pearson PTE Academic 70 or 76, telc B2 or C1, UNIcert II or III, Cambridge certificates, or TOEIC (Listening and Reading 865/945, Speaking 170/180, Writing 160/180). Holders of the German Abitur and applicants with secondary or university qualifications from countries such as Australia, Canada (except Quebec and New Brunswick), the USA, the United Kingdom, Ireland and New Zealand are exempt, as are holders of a qualification equivalent to a German degree from a listed group of Caribbean and Commonwealth states (including Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago). Each programme description states its own language level and accepted tests. The uni-assist TOEFL code is 2727.
A Master programme requires a first university degree in a relevant subject that is equivalent to a German Bachelor. Programme-specific conditions apply: for example, the Master in Digital Engineering requires a Bachelor in computer science or a related or engineering subject of at least three years, a minimum grade of 2.5, at least 20 ECTS credits in computer science (or one year of relevant professional experience compensating for missing credits), C1-level German or English, and an aptitude assessment procedure. Some programmes ask for a motivation letter, internship proof, references or aptitude tests. Applications for Integrative Neuroscience and Performance Analysis of Sport are always made through uni-assist.
Admission to doctoral studies is governed by the doctoral regulations (Promotionsordnung) of the faculty where the project is carried out. Applicants should first contact the faculty and a professor who offers a doctoral place; foreign degrees undergo an equivalence check. The application for enrolment as a doctoral candidate, with copies of all degrees and certificates and a translation into German or English, is submitted to the student registry (Campus Welcome Center) or, for the Faculty of Medicine, to the dean's office for studies (Leipziger Straße 44, House 64). Enrolment is possible in any semester and can last 10 semesters. Doctoral degrees awarded include Dr.-Ing., Dr. med., Dr. phil., Dr. rer. nat., Dr. rer. pol. and Dr. rer. medic. The Graduate Academy supports doctoral candidates.
The university is based at three sites in Magdeburg.
The Studentenwerk Magdeburg operates twelve student halls of residence near the main university facilities, offering furnished single rooms, apartments and shared-flat rooms. The university library provides the library catalogue, e-journals and databases, and the university sports centre offers courses and events. The Science Harbour (Wissenschaftshafen) on the Elbe next to the campus is a developing quarter for research and innovative companies.
Study programmes offered at Otto von Guericke University Magdeburg.
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