University in Germany
Potsdam, Brandenburg, Germany
University profile
The University of Potsdam (Universität Potsdam) is a public university in Potsdam, the capital of Brandenburg, founded in 1991. It describes itself as a young, modern and future-oriented university and is the only teacher-training institution of the state of Brandenburg. It sits in a region with one of the highest densities of research institutions in Germany, with a strong network of non-university institutes, and is a member of the German University Alliance UA 11+ and of the European Digital UniverCity (EDUC) alliance, which it leads.
The university has three locations in and around Potsdam. The Am Neuen Palais campus, beside the Park of Sanssouci, hosts the Faculty of Arts. Golm, home to one of the region's largest science parks, hosts the Faculty of Science and the Faculty of Human Sciences. Griebnitzsee, close to Babelsberg, hosts the Faculty of Economics and Social Sciences, the Law Faculty and the Digital Engineering Faculty, which is run jointly with the Hasso Plattner Institute. The Faculty of Health Sciences Brandenburg is a joint faculty with the Brandenburg University of Technology Cottbus-Senftenberg and the Brandenburg Medical School Theodor Fontane. The total campus area is 226,496 m².
In winter semester 2025/26 the university had 19,647 students, of whom 2,645 were international, and in 2025 it awarded 1,242 Bachelor's degrees and First State Examinations in Law, 961 Master's degrees and 968 teaching degrees. It employs 371 professors, 723 academic staff and 1,004 staff in technical and administrative services, plus 1,076 staff funded by external or special funds. Among the subjects found in this form only at Potsdam, the university names Jewish Studies, Patholinguistics and IT Systems Engineering at the Hasso Plattner Institute.
Research strengths are organised in university research focuses: Cognitive Sciences, Education for the Future, Evolutionary Systems Biology, Individual-Based Global Change Ecology and Sustainable Materials Design. Affiliated institutes include the Abraham Geiger College, the Moses Mendelssohn Center for European-Jewish Studies and the Zacharias Frankel College, and scientific institutions include the Potsdam Graduate School, the Botanical Garden, the Human Rights Center and the Center for Teacher Training and Education Research.
International students come from 120 countries. The International Office advises degree and exchange students, the Welcome Center is the first contact for visiting researchers and doctoral candidates, and the Center for Languages and Key Competencies (Zessko) offers German courses and intensive DSH courses. Students can live in residence halls of the Studierendenwerk West:Brandenburg, whose rent includes utilities. The university is system-accredited, and the University Library serves the campuses at Neues Palais, Golm and Babelsberg/Griebnitzsee.
The University of Potsdam charges no tuition fees for any undergraduate programme (Bachelor's and First State Examination in Law) or for any consecutive Master's programme. The exception is some continuing-education programmes, where fees are set individually. All students pay a semester fee (Semesterbeitrag), currently 372.80 euros in total, which is not tuition and includes the public-transport ticket where eligible. The university quotes average monthly student expenditure of 943 euros, with individual totals ranging between 600 and 1,100 euros.
High-performing, socially committed Bachelor's and Master's students of all faculties receive 300 euros per month for at least one year, funded half by sponsors and half by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research. About 85 scholarships were awarded for winter semester 2025/26 and summer semester 2026. International students may apply; their grades must be converted to the German scale, for example by uni-assist. Applications are made in an annual round (the round for winter semester 2026/27 and summer semester 2027 has closed). Contact: [email protected]. University Scholarship Potsdam
The International Office awards up to three grants per semester to international Bachelor's and Master's students who earned their school-leaving certificate abroad. The grant is 700 euros per month for at most five months. Applicants must hold a non-German nationality, be enrolled at Potsdam, have good results, be able to finish within a year, have financed their studies from their own means so far and show financial need. Applications run from 15 June to 15 July for winter semester and from 15 December to 15 January for summer semester, through an online portal with a login to the university account. Documents include a curriculum vitae, a statement of reasons, the PULS performance overview or transcript, and the study-progress certificate. Degree completion grant
Offered by the Equal Opportunity Coordination Office to students, doctoral candidates and postdocs, primarily women and parents after a family-related interruption. Maximum monthly rates are 800 euros for students, 1,000 euros for doctoral students and 1,300 euros for postdocs, plus 160 euros per child. Gertrud Feiertag Scholarship
The university awards full-time and final scholarships to doctoral students. It also lists foundations for gifted students (such as the Studienstiftung) and the DAAD scholarship database, and the Central Student Advisory Service ([email protected]) advises on applications; applicants are advised to apply by the end of the second semester. The Brandenburg Scholarship for Rural Teachers pays 600 euros per month to teacher-training students who commit to teach at schools in Brandenburg with special need. International students with a residence permit for study are not eligible for BAföG. Scholarship programmes | Funding for international students
Browse the scholarships listed for University of Potsdam and check each award’s eligibility.
View scholarships for University of Potsdam →Degrees are taught in German, with a few exceptions such as Anglophone Postcolonial Studies, which has no German requirement. Some programmes have a numerus clausus (NC) and a limited number of places; others are open admission, where applicants enrol online during the enrolment period without a separate application. First-year applicants may apply for the winter semester only, within the deadline, and the application deadline for locally restricted programmes is 15 July (winter semester); applications for a higher semester in restricted programmes are also possible for the summer semester, with a deadline of 15 January. Applications are made through the PULS portal; admission-restricted programmes run through the national DoSV coordination of the Stiftung für Hochschulzulassung, with up to three applications at Potsdam. Some programmes require an entrance examination or online self-assessment. Enrolment for programmes without NC runs from 15 August to 15 September (winter semester) and 15 February to 15 March (summer semester).
A school-leaving certificate obtained abroad must first be recognised for the state of Brandenburg, either through the Staatliches Schulamt Cottbus (which issues a certificate confirming eligibility and the converted grade) or through uni-assist e.V., which issues a preliminary review documentation (VPD). The certificate or VPD, together with a copy of the entrance qualification, is submitted in the PULS portal. The university advises allowing five weeks for evaluation of a non-German qualification before the application deadline. There is no Studienkolleg in Potsdam or Brandenburg; Study Preparation Brandenburg (SVB) offers preparation for those whose qualification does not give direct access, and graduates of a Studienkolleg who have passed the Feststellungsprüfung may submit their existing evaluation.
Bachelor's programmes and Law require German at level C1 of the CEFR by enrolment (B2 for Angewandte Kultur- und Translationsstudien deutsch-polnisch). Accepted proofs for C1 include DSH-2 or DSH-3, TestDaF with level 4 in all four parts, DSD II with C1 in all parts, telc Deutsch C1 Hochschule with grade good or better, and the Goethe-Zertifikat C2 (GDS). The university runs the DSH examination twice a year (mid-July for winter semester, mid-February for summer semester) and offers semester-long intensive DSH courses at Zessko. Master's programmes taught in German require C1 or better; some programmes, such as English-taught ones, require B2, B1 or A2 as set in their subject-specific regulations. Doctoral programmes have no general language requirement.
Most Master's programmes require English at C1, B2 or A2 as set in their subject-specific regulations. Accepted proofs include, for C1, TOEFL iBT with at least 95 points, IELTS Academic with at least 7 in every component, Cambridge C1 Advanced with at least 180 points and PTE Academic with at least 76; for B2, TOEFL iBT with at least 75 points, IELTS with at least 6.0 in every component, Cambridge B2 First with at least 160 points and PTE Academic with at least 59.
Applicants need a first professional higher-education degree (for example a Bachelor's, state examination, Diplom or Magister); a foreign degree must be equivalent to at least a three-year German Bachelor's degree. Each programme sets subject-specific entrance requirements in its own access and admission regulations, assessed by the examination board. Some programmes require a VPD from uni-assist e.V. as part of the application. Application opens on 1 April for winter semester and 1 November for summer semester, and deadlines are set per programme: for winter semester 2026/27 examples are 1 June, 15 July and 15 August, and for summer semester 2027 examples are 1 December, 15 January and 15 February. Enrolment for Master's programmes runs from 15 August to 15 October (winter semester).
Doctoral candidates register at promo.uni-potsdam.de and apply for admission to the Doctoral Examining Board of their subject (the Dean in Law) with a supervision agreement, a tabular curriculum vitae, copies of the university entrance qualification and certified transcripts, with certified translations for foreign degrees. Language requirements follow the applicable doctoral regulations and the supervisor. Options include individual doctorates, structured doctoral programmes via the Potsdam Graduate School and binational Cotutelle procedures. The Welcome Center assists international doctoral candidates with visas, residence permits and health insurance.
The University Library has locations at Neues Palais, in Golm (IKMZ) and at Babelsberg/Griebnitzsee. The University Athletic Department, a canteen service, the Studierendenwerk residence halls and the student advisory services serve students across the campuses. The total campus area is 226,496 m².
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