University in Germany
Kassel, Hessen, Germany
University profile
The University of Kassel (Universität Kassel) is a public university in the city of Kassel in northern Hesse. Its motto is Heute für morgen (today for tomorrow), and it describes itself as an open, democratic university committed to a socially just and ecologically and economically sustainable future, with sustainability placed at the centre of research, teaching, knowledge transfer and campus operations. It was founded in 1971 as a reform university and has built a reputation for practice-oriented learning and interdisciplinary work.
The university is spread over six sites in Kassel, with the central Campus Holländischer Platz in the Nordstadt, on the former Henschel industrial grounds, and two sites outside the city: Witzenhausen, home of the Ecological Agricultural Sciences department, and the Hessian state domain at Frankenhausen.
Teaching and research are organised in ten departments (Fachbereiche) and an art school: FB 01 Humanwissenschaften, FB 02 Geistes- und Kulturwissenschaften, FB 05 Gesellschaftswissenschaften, FB 06 Architektur - Stadtplanung - Landschaftsplanung, FB 07 Wirtschaftswissenschaften, FB 10 Mathematik und Naturwissenschaften, FB 11 Ökologische Agrarwissenschaften, FB 14 Bauingenieur- und Umweltingenieurwesen, FB 15 Maschinenbau and FB 16 Elektrotechnik/Informatik, together with the Kunsthochschule Kassel (art and design). The programme range covers 40 Bachelor programmes (including 7 combination Bachelors with 15 minor subjects), 50 Master programmes, two artistic degrees, one Diplom programme and eight fee-based continuing-education Master programmes, plus teacher-training degrees for primary, lower-secondary, grammar, special-needs and vocational schools.
In winter semester 2025/26 the university had 21,131 students, of whom 3,357 (16%) were international and 2,588 of these were Bildungsausländer, that is, students who gained their entrance qualification abroad. The university employs 3,406 people, including 319 professors. Study support includes the LEO learning centre behind the canteen on the main campus, a library system with branch libraries, a student welcome programme for international students and accommodation through the Studierendenwerk Kassel halls of residence in Kassel and Witzenhausen.
Two profile-defining research areas, Multifunktionale Materie und Multiskalensysteme and Nachhaltige Transformationen, shape its research, and the Kassel Institute for Sustainability bundles sustainability research and teaching. The university is a public institution of the State of Hesse and one of its five universities.
Every student pays the Semesterbeitrag at enrolment and at each re-registration. It is not tuition. It totals 409.27 euros per semester: Studierendenwerk 106.00, administrative fee 50.00, AStA 17.15, Deutschlandsemesterticket 226.80, hardship fund 1.30, emergency fund 0.75, nextbike bike-hire 2.70, culture ticket 4.02 and allerleih e.V. 0.55 euros. Students of the Management School (UNIKIMS) pay 175.20 euros. Late re-registration costs a 30.00 euro fee.
Fee-based programmes are the eight part-time continuing-education Master programmes offered through the Management School of the University of Kassel (UNIKIMS).
The university awards the Deutschlandstipendium to talented students enrolled at Kassel: 300 euros per month, half from private sponsors and half from the federal government. It is awarded each winter semester for one year, up to the standard period of study. Criteria include achievement, personal background, social commitment and willingness to take responsibility, and special social or family circumstances such as a migration background are considered. The 2026 call was extended to 30 September 2026. Deutschlandstipendium at Kassel
The university points students to BAföG (German students), student loans, the Begabtenförderungswerke, the Aufstiegsstipendium, and advice from the Studienfinanzierungsberatung of the Studierendenwerk Kassel on campus. For stays abroad, Erasmus, PROMOS, SHOSTA, DAAD individual scholarships and Fulbright are listed. Studienfinanzierung | Funding for study abroad
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View scholarships for University of Kassel →A recognised school-leaving qualification comparable to the German Hochschulzugangsberechtigung is required for a Bachelor degree; nationality is irrelevant. Qualifications can be checked in the anabin database, and the university does not carry out pre-checks of certificates. Applicants whose school certificate is not sufficient can prepare through a one-year Studienkolleg and its Feststellungsprüfung before applying; the university does not run its own Studienkolleg, so applicants apply to a recognised Studienkolleg at another German institution. For artistic programmes, the artistic entrance examination can be taken even without a recognised qualification, in which case outstanding artistic talent must be shown.
Applicants with a qualification gained outside Germany apply through uni-assist, the central service for international applications. Deadlines and programme-specific requirements (evidence, prior knowledge, documents) are set on each programme page. Restricted-admission programmes (Zulassungsbeschränkung) currently include the Bachelor in Architecture, Psychology and Stadt- und Regionalplanung (allocated through the DoSV), Lehramt an Grundschulen (local selection) and the Masters in Psychology and Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy (local selection, status 7 February 2024). Places are ranked by quota, mainly by the grade of the entrance qualification, with separate quotas for non-EU applicants and other groups.
Most programmes require proof of German. DSH-2 is required for admission, while DSH-1 suffices for Product Design (Kunsthochschule) and the Master English and American Studies; the Bachelor programmes Bildende Kunst and Visuelle Kommunikation require B1 only. Equivalent evidence includes German-language school qualifications from Austria, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Luxembourg, the European Baccalaureate with German as L1 or L2 and a US Advanced Placement exam in German. Applicants with at least 600 teaching hours and level B1 can apply for a preparatory language course leading to the DSH; the exam itself needs at least 1,000 teaching hours and level C1 and can be taken at Kassel.
Some programmes are taught in English or in both languages. The required level is given in each programme's admission requirements, and language levels follow the Common European Framework (CEFR). Accepted English evidence includes school certificates, IELTS, TOEFL iBT, TOEIC, Cambridge, telc and Pearson PTE Academic according to the level required.
A Master degree requires a recognised first university degree comparable to a German qualification. Application periods, programme-specific prerequisites and language levels are set on the page of each Master programme, and applications from abroad also go through uni-assist.
Doctoral candidates are supported by the Graduate Academy, which publishes information on pre-doctoral steps, the doctoral procedure and the Promotionsgeschäftsstelle, and offers the Kasseler Graduiertenprogramm.
The university does not issue visas. Citizens of non-EU countries generally apply for a long-term student visa before travelling; nationals of Australia, Canada, Israel, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the USA may enter without a visa and apply for a residence permit within 90 days. The International Office advises at [email protected] and +49 561 804-7634.
The University Library Kassel (Landesbibliothek und Murhardsche Bibliothek der Stadt Kassel) operates at six university sites. The campus library at Holländischer Platz offers eleven group work rooms and four learning cubes, and further libraries serve Wilhelmshöher Allee, Oberzwehren, Witzenhausen and the Kunsthochschule. The International Study Centre (ISZ) houses the Language Centre, and the IT Service Centre, Graduate Academy and university workshops serve all sites. About 400 hire bikes at 56 stations are available in Kassel through nextbike, with the first 60 minutes free for students; the semester ticket covers regional transport.
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