Application and Studies

For incoming exchange students from partner universities:

If you are planning to come to HSBI as an ERASMUS+ student or as part of any other university partnership or exchange programme, you need to be nominated by your home university beforehand. After that, you need to go through the application process. It is important that you complete your application before the application deadlines.

For Free Movers:

If your home university does not have a partnership with HSBI, you are still welcome to apply as a free mover by completing the online application process outlined below.

Online application via Mobility Online

Please apply via the online application portal using the following link: Registration for an Exchange at HSBI.

You will then be asked to upload the following documents:

• Transcript of Records
• Passport Copy/national ID Card Copy
• Copy of your health insurance card (EHIC)/proof of health insurance during your stay in Germany
• Learning Agreement
• Motivational letter (only for free movers)
• Proof of English or German language skills at B2 level
• Portfolio (only in the Faculty of Design and Art)

Once you have completed the online application process, the International Office will evaluate your application and contact you as soon as a decision has been made.

The application periods for each term are:

• 1 October–15 November for the summer semester
• 1 April–15 May for the winter semester

Please note that most courses are held in German. Bielefeld School of Business, the Faculty of Engineering and Mathematics and the Faculty of Social Sciences offer an English-taught programme, which can be found in the download box on this page.

Just bear in mind that you will need a German level of at least B2 to take part in the Business courses that are taught in German. You will need a German level of at least B1 to take part in the German-taught courses of all other faculties.

Kindly prepare well before your stay abroad and consider taking German classes at institutions like the Goethe-Institut or the Online Linguistic Support (OLS). Even if the courses you are taking at HSBI are taught in English, you should consider learning German to manage everyday life in Germany.

A German language course is also offered in the orientation week and during the semester.

As an exchange student at Bielefeld School of Business at our institution, you can acquire an optional qualification, a certificate called “International Business Manager.” A short overview about this certificate can be found in the download box on the left.

The International Office will assist you in your search for suitable accommodation in the available student halls in Bielefeld. There is a limited number of rooms in student accommodation that can be given to international exchange students. Once these rooms have been taken, we will do our best to help you find an alternative option on the private housing market.

Please note that the housing situation in Bielefeld is very difficult and it is hard to find a furnished room for only one semester, especially in the student price range. We will do our best to make every exchange student at least one offer of accommodation in Bielefeld. If you choose to decline this offer, we will not be able to make you another one.

The semester contribution is not a tuition fee but a mandatory contribution paid by every student of HSBI for social purposes. Most of it goes towards paying for the semester ticket (“NRW-Ticket”) which allows free public transport (trams, buses, local trains) in and around Bielefeld as well as all over North Rhine-Westphalia and the City of Osnabrück in Lower Saxony. The remaining amount benefits the Studierendenwerk (Student Services) and the Students’ Union.

Currently it is approx. 320 euros per semester.

On the day of your arrival in Bielefeld, you will meet your Buddy – a more experienced student at HSBI – who will be pleased to assist you with all steps through the official bureaucracy and into everyday life in Bielefeld and at the university. Various fun trips and events are also organised.

The programme is a Local Erasmus Initiative and is supported by the DAAD with funds from the Federal Foreign Office.

Before the official beginning of the semester, we offer a three-week orientation period organised by the International Office. We strongly recommend that you arrive in Bielefeld early enough to be able to take part in this orientation period (“Freshers’ Weeks”). This will help you manage all the necessary formalities after arrival, improve your German language skills and help you make new friends. The Freshers’ Weeks include a free and intensive German language course and a free culture and leisure programme.

Language Centre at Bielefeld University
Students of HSBI can participate in language courses offered by the Language Centre at Bielefeld University as guest students. Please see the notes on how to register as a student of HSBI.

Self-learning online courses
You can use the professional online language courses developed by speexx to train and improve your skills in English, Spanish, French, Italian or German. The courses are available for self-study in ILIAS. In the ILIAS repository you will also find other courses that you can take for free. The language courses can be found under Repository > Self-learning courses > Language Trainings or directly via this ILIAS link.