Commissioner for Students with Disabilities and Chronic Illnesses

The Commissioner for Students with Disabilities and Chronic Illnesses is responsible for the students of all HSBI locations and study programmes and thus cannot always be reached in the office. Please make an appointment so you do not come to the office in vain. Of course, you may always try to come in for a spontaneous meeting! 

The office of the Commissioner for Students with Disabilities and Chronic Illnesses is located in the university’s main building:

Room A 412
Interaktion 1, 33619 Bielefeld
Tel: +49.521.106-70236

handicap@hsbi.de

Appointments for consultations at other university locations are also possible!

The student union (Allgemeiner Studierendenausschuss, AStA) is the executive body of the students’ self-government and represents the HSBI students’ interests. Its members are students; they fulfil their voluntary roles with great personal commitment. As the students’ interest group, AStA clearly distinguishes itself from other counselling services at HSBI. BeSt is one of AStA’s departments.

Its services focus on (prospective) students with disabilities who are looking for advice, information and an exchange of experiences. In doing so, members of the BeSt department also draw on personal experiences and resources from student life, making it possible for them to give a realistic perspective on chances and opportunities.

In addition, the BeSt department raises awareness of the concerns of students with disabilities throughout the university. Here, too, they always make sure to maintain confidentiality.

You are welcome to contact the members of the BeSt department with all enquiries concerning access and admission to studies, compensation for disadvantages, disability ID card, BAföG, orientation at HSBI, planning your studies, starting your career, planning your career or exchange of experiences and networking with other university members.

AStA department for students with disabilities (BeSt-Referat)
Room A 237
Interaktion 1, 33619 Bielefeld
Tel: +49.521.106-7724

best@fh-asta.de

fh-asta.de/best.html

The psychosocial counselling services provided by ZSB at HSBI supports students in coping with small and large crises during their studies. Student life can be very strenuous, as in addition to the regular courses, you must prepare examinations and follow your daily routines. In the course of your studies, you may feel overburdened by these various requirements. Many students complain that they suffer from mental blocks, fears and depression during their studies.

This condition depresses and can have a negative impact on studies. Psychosocial counselling gives you the opportunity to discuss your problems in a quiet atmosphere and to find solutions. We offer confidential advice, e.g., in case of orientation difficulties and mental blocks regarding your subject, study techniques and exam nerves or individual burdens (including stress, grief, despair).

Counselling is free of charge and subject to confidentiality. Furthermore, ZSB regularly offers workshops to enhance skills for successful studies.

To make an appointment, send an e-mail to psb@hsbi.de.

hsbi.de/psychosoziale-beratung

HSBI’s International Office advises and assists students in preparing and realising stays abroad during their studies, such as semesters abroad, internships abroad or shorter stays such as summer or winter schools. We know that students with disabilities and chronic illnesses usually face more effort organising their stays abroad, as their special needs with regard to financing and health have to be considered. However, we strongly encourage you to consider this opportunity during your studies.

We will help you to get in touch with universities abroad in advance in order to check the local conditions and support offers. In addition, we will assist you in applying for funding due to specific additional financial needs (e.g., for barrier-free accommodation or for an accompanying person).

In addition to our consultation hours on Bielefeld Campus, we offer video consultations via Zoom.

International Office
hsbi.de/en/international-office

If you are in a specific exceptional situation, you can make a hardship application as part of your application for a study programme with restricted admission. With a hardship application, circumstances can be asserted that justify an immediate admission to studies.

Up to 5% of available study places are reserved for such cases. The places of this quota are awarded through a ranking of the recognised hardship applications. The approval/rejection of a hardship application has no influence on the other rankings.

Please note, however, that only very few people can make a hardship application. For detailed information, please visit hsbi.de/studium/bewerbung/sonderantraege/haertefallantrag or contact the persons named on the website of the Registrar’s and Examination Office, who are responsible for the faculty or study programme in which you would like to take up studies.

You can apply for disadvantage compensation to improve your average grade or waiting period if you can prove that there were circumstances that prevented you from achieving a better average grade or from acquiring your university entrance qualification earlier.

In addition to an informal justification, you must provide proof in the form of an assessment from your school. Please upload this to the application portal as part of your online application.

For information on the various options, please visit
hsbi.de/studium/bewerbung/sonderantraege/nachteilsausgleich.

Disadvantage compensation during studies is an instrument for establishing equal educational opportunities for all students. The granting of disadvantage compensation is enshrined in the Higher Education Act.

Disadvantage compensation is intended to ensure that students with disabilities and chronic illnesses can study successfully with the same opportunities. A disadvantage compensation is always a measure that is based on specific situations and individually tailored to the applicant.

Disadvantage compensation aims to create equal opportunities by making examination conditions as equal and fair as possible. It is important to stress that the disadvantage compensation is not intended to favour certain individuals or to lower the examination standards.

Please find out more about the application here:
hsbi.de/studium/studium-organisieren/antraege-einreichen

HSBI’s library offers various services and conditions for people with disabilities or chronic illnesses. In order to make use of these altered conditions, it is important that you contact the specialist staff during the library’s service hours to initially register with your disability ID card. As an alternative, you can hand in your notice of disadvantage compensation, for example, if it provides for extended deadlines for term papers or theses.

Borrowing conditions
Students with disabilities (degree of disability at least 50%) are eligible for extended borrowing conditions. For example, they may borrow books until the lecture has ended and common reference copies, such as media in the reserved collection, for 2 days.

Media provision service
The library staff is happy to support students with disabilities in compiling literature. Please contact the library staff with a list of the literature you would like them to provide. If you send the list to the respective library branch in advance, the staff can provide the media for you to borrow or look at them. On request, the specialist staff will also be happy to assist you directly as you search the shelves.

Accessible Internet access
The website of HSBI’s library comply with the guidelines of the Accessible Information Technology Ordinance (Barrierefreie Informationstechnik-Verordnung, BITV) and the corresponding legal requirements for universities in North Rhine-Westphalia.

Scanning service

Within the scope of applicable copyright law, we can scan passages from books and magazines for visually impaired students on request.

Accessibility
The libraries in HSBI’s main building in Bielefeld and on Minden Campus have accessible entrances.

Please note that the library at Lampingstraße (Faculty of Design and Art) is on the 1st floor and can only be reached by stairs, as this is a historic building. Unfortunately, no lift is available. If you need assistance, please reach out to an employee on site.

Lampingstraße library
Tel: +49.521.106-7643
E-mail: bib.lampingstrasse@hsbi.de

HSBI offers a room where students with disabilities can rest in the main building on Bielefeld Campus, Interaktion 1. If required, you can request access to the room as follows:

• You have a chronic illness/disability that requires rest, which you can prove with a medical certificate.
• You make an appointment with the Commissioner for Students with Disabilities and Chronic Illnesses about a request for a locking authorisation for the quiet room.

(If you require access to a quiet room at another location, please also contact the Commissioner for Students with Disabilities or Chronic Illnesses.)

• The Commissioner for Students with Disabilities and Chronic Illnesses decides on / approves the request and signs the form for the locking authorisation.
• Facility Management sets up the locking authorisation on your CampusCard.

All lecture halls in the main building on Bielefeld Campus and Minden Campus are equipped with hearing assistance systems. Hearing assistance is also available in the Audimax at the Lampingstraße location and in Room 005 on Gütersloh Campus (Gleis 13). Students can use the “Sennheiser Mobile Connect” app to receive the audio signal from the microphones and PCs without latency with their smartphone, provided that the devices are logged in to the eduroam Wi-Fi. Login or registration in the app is not necessary; by scanning the QR code in the entrance area of the respective room the audio signals will be transmitted automatically. The app is available as a free download from the respective app store. For more information on the hearing assistance, see the Data Processing Centre’s FAQ at https://www.hsbi.de/dvz/faq/item/452.

Students without their own laptop or tablet who are in financial hardship can borrow one from the IT ServiceDesk for one semester, so that they are able to participate in the university’s digital services. To be able to borrow a device, you must make a successful request to AStA’s Legal and Social Affairs department. You will only be eligible for this if your monthly income is below a certain limit. AStA will check whether you are in financial hardship and provide you with an eligibility certificate for the loan. The deadline for loan requests is 21 March for the summer semester and 21 September for the winter semester. Please find more information and the request form [in German] in the “Studentisches Leben” section at fh-asta.de.

Students with disabilities and chronic illnesses may require the use of personal aids to ensure they have equal opportunities in studies. As a rule, students have to procure these aids themselves and can then use them at HSBI.

If you need a statement from the university for the request, the Commissioner for Students with Disabilities and Chronic Illnesses can formulate it.

Various organisations offer further information or assistance for students with health impairments. We have compiled some useful links for you below:

Studying with Disabilities – Information and Advice Centre (IBS):
https://www.studierendenwerke.de/en/topics/studying-with-disabilities

IBS – on accommodation:
https://www.studierendenwerk-bielefeld.de/wohnen/allgemeine-informationen/wohnen-mit-handicap

Competence Centre for Disability, Academic Education, Career (kombabb e.V.):
https://www.kombabb-internetportal-nrw.de

Der Paritätische: Self-help contact point:
https://www.paritaetischer-bielefeld.de/selbsthilfe-kontaktstelle/ueberblick

Portal for young people seeking self-help:
https://schon-mal-an-selbsthilfegruppen-gedacht.de/

Sag ich’s? [Do I say it?]
https://sag-ichs.de/start
https://sag-ichs.de/selbst-test

ADHS Deutschland e.V.
https://www.adhs-deutschland.de/adhs/adhs-ads

The “Inclusive Mobility” web portal enables students with disabilities to search universities’ existing offers and conditions on site in a database.
https://inclusivemobility.eu/

The website “Studieren weltweit” also provides tips for students with disabilities.
https://www.studieren-weltweit.de/infocard/tipps-fuer-studierende-mit-behinderung/

All students pay a semester contribution before the start of the semester. The sum varies for each semester and consists of the costs for the Studierendenwerk and a contribution for the AStA, costs for the semester ticket and, if necessary, further study programme or location-related contributions.

You can look up the exact composition of the semester contribution at https://www.hsbi.de/studium/semesterbeitrag.

The cost of the semester ticket (the largest proportion of the semester contribution) can be refunded/remitted under certain conditions (e.g. if you have the corresponding identifier on your disability ID card). Please make a request for the refund/remission at hsbi.de/studium/studium-organisieren/antraege-einreichen/ticketbefreiung 

ZSB’s student finance advisory service advises students neutrally and comprehensively on offers that suit your needs and are often unknown to students.

hsbi.de/studienfinanzierungsberatung 

There are special scholarships for students with disabilities.
hsbi.de/studienfinanzierungsberatung/studieren-mit-handicap

Various scholarship programmes to finance stays abroad are available. Within the scholarship programmes, students with disabilities and chronic illnesses have the opportunity to apply for further funding.

Erasmus+
https://eu.daad.de/infos-fuer-einzelpersonen/foerderung-fuer-studierende-und-graduierte/sonderfoerderung/de/51277-zusatzfoerderung-fuer-studierende-mit-behinderung-oder-chronischer-erkrankung/

DAAD scholarships (e.g. PROMOS, HAW.International)
https://www.daad.de/de/der-daad/mobilitaet-mit-behinderung/