Promos

All regular HSBI students can apply from the 1st semester onwards.

• Study-related stays at universities worldwide (1–6 months)
• Theses and term papers at universities or companies worldwide (1–6 months)
• Internships at universities, companies and organisations worldwide (1–6 months)
• Participation in summer/winter schools worldwide (2–6 weeks)

The following stays are not eligible for the grant:

• Study-related stays abroad and internships in Erasmus+ programme countries (EU member states, Iceland, Liechtenstein, North Macedonia, Norway and Türkiye),
• Stays in students’ countries of origin if they don’t have German nationality (except if they have mainly resided in Germany for at least five years),
• Stays in regions for which the Federal Foreign Office has issued a travel warning.

Within a study cycle (e.g. bachelor’s or master’s), a maximum of 6 months of Promos funding is possible. However, only 2–3 months per scholarship holder can usually be funded, even if the stay lasts longer.

If sufficient scholarship funds are available, the funding can possibly be extended.

Please view the monthly funding rate for your destination country here. You will learn the concrete amount of funding that you will receive after the scholarship has been awarded.

Simultaneous funding through the Mobility Grant, the Green Mobility Grant and/or Auslands-BAföG is possible.

Students with a degree of disability of at least 50 percent or a chronic illness are eligible for reimbursement of additional costs related to their stay abroad of up to €10,000.

Important note: The reimbursement must be requested at least 2 months before the start of the planned stay abroad, so please make sure to contact the International Office in good time.

Applying is possible once a year through our online portal. The deadline for applications is always 31 January for all stays abroad that take place during that year.

These documents must be submitted in German or English:

• CV in table format
• Letter of motivation (template in the online portal)
• Current transcript
• Proof of language skills
  • Current transcript (if you attended language courses at HSBI)
  • Abitur/university entrance certificate with indication of the CEFR level (except Bielefeld School of Business, instead transcript with language course)
  • DAAD language test (free of charge at Bielefeld University’s Language Centre)
  • TOEFL, IELTS, Cambridge Certificate or similar tests (Bielefeld School of Business offers a TOEFL preparation course)
• Letter confirming your study place or internship, a place in a summer/winter school or the confirmation of the supervisor for your thesis or term paper (can be handed in later)
• Learning Agreement (only for study-related stays)
• Exact schedule (for theses and term papers only)
• For the reimbursement of additional costs related to your stay abroad:
  • Copy of the disability card
  • For people with chronic illness: Doctor’s certificate with description of medical requirements

Selection procedures and criteria

The selection procedure takes place in February, so that applicants receive feedback about their application around mid-February; except in Bielefeld School of Business, where feedback takes place in mid-March.

These are the selection criteria:

• Academic achievements
• Purpose of the planned stay for the further course of your studies
• Relevant language skills
• Special needs and/or circumstances that make it more difficult for you to stay abroad (fewer opportunities)

After your stay abroad, the following documents must be submitted through the online portal within 30 days:

• Proof of the realisation of the stay abroad (certificate of stay, internship certificate, etc.),
• Experience report (guide in the online portal)