FAQ Study Organisation

Every student has the possibility of taking up to two semesters on leave of absence during your studies. For each semester, a seperate application must be submitted. You are not allowed to take more than two consecutive semesters on leave, a leave of absence in the first semester is also not possible. The only exception is students on parental leave; these students may apply for a longer leave of absence.

While on leave, you still have the student status, have the right to take part in examinations.During your leave of absence, you are also not permitted to take any courses, use the workshops, or take examinations. But you still have the student status and the right to take exams. On request you can get rid of the semester ticket.

Deadline:
The application for a semester on leave must be signed by the faculty coordinator and submitted to the office of student affairs (Referat Studienangelegenheiten) before the re-registration deadline (Rückmeldefrist), by the beginning of the semester (April 1st/ Oct 1st) at the latest.

Examples of such reasons would be:

• maternity or paternity leave
• disability and chronic illness
• financial reasons
• illnes attested by a physician
• care of close relatives in need of nursing care
• internships required by the program of study
• disposal of military service
• semester abroad
• psychosocial problems
• Panel work
• and serious personal reasons

You cannot receive any financial aid from the BAföG office during your leave of absence, so you would have to apply for Hartz IV for financial support. Furthermore, students with children may not be able to receive child benefits and your health insurance fees may also change. If you work as a student assistance, you are not allowed to earn more than 400€ per month.

There is an de-registration form that can be completed, signed, and submitted to the Examination Office (Prüfungsamt) in room A1.05. For this, the computer studio, library, and the technical equipment office must sign and confirm that you do not owe anything. If the de-registration takes place before the end of your studies, the form must be signed by a professor of your department. 

You can only be officially removed from the register after you submit a completed and signed de-registration form to the Examination Office (Prüfungsamt) in room A1.05. A certificate of your de-registration will be required for your health insurance, employment office, and pension insurance.

You should immediately get in touch with the Student Affairs Office (Referat Studienangelegenheiten) in room A1.04. If you had been enrolled in a regular program, it is possible for you to be re-enrolled (please be aware of the re-registration deadline). The re-enrollment form can be found in the Student Affairs Office.

After you have completed your studies and been removed from the register, alumni of Absolvent_in, Diplom, and Master programs cannot be re-enrolled. You can enroll in the Meisterschüler program only directly from your Absolvent_in, Diplom, and Master degree.

However, it is possible for alumni of a Bachelor's program to be removed from the register and re-enrolled for a Master's program.

If you want to change programs and continue your studies within a different department, you must submit an application (Antrag auf Fachrichtungswechsel) to the Examination Office (Prüfungsamt, room A1.04), after which you will receive an invitation to the entrance exam. This consists of an interview with professors of the department where you will present your works and motivation for the transfer. 

Only the filled out application form (Antrag auf Fachrichtungswechsel) is required.

The entrance examination takes place twice a year. The application period for the winter semester is May 1-31 and for the summer semester December 1-31.

The re-registration period for the winter semester is always January 1 – February 20. The extended deadline (with late fees) is March 10. The re-registration period for the summer semester is June 1 – July 20. The extended deadline (with late fees) is August 10. Students generally receive the re-registration request letter about one month before the beginning of the re-registration period by post.

The deadline for the application for the final examination is the end of the semester before your examination semester. Applications should be submitted within the re-registration period, as professors and mentors are generally unavailable after this period. 

Registration period for new students and re-enrollment:

• June 1 to August 10 for the winter semester and January 1 to March 10 for the summer semester.

Application for leave of absence and part-time studies:

• Completed applications must be submitted after the beginning of the semester at the latest (October 20 for the winter semester and April 20 for the summer semester).

Application for de-registration:

• The application for being removed from the register must be submitted latest after the end of your studies.

You can apply for the Master-Class Art Student program (Meisterschüler_innen-Studium) if you have completed your Fine Arts or Master Design degree with „sehr gut“. Furthermore, Fine Arts graduates must have completed their degree within the regular period of study. The Master-Class Art Student program must be started as a direct continuation following the completion of your degree; it is not possible to be enrolled in this program once you have been removed from the register. Graduates of other academies and schools do not qualify for this program.

The application for the Master-Class Art Student program (Meisterschüler_innen-Studium) must be submitted 4 weeks after the final examination at the latest.

The program is max. 2 semesters long.

The Master-Class Art Student program is not financially supported by BAföG. The student rate for health insurance will also not apply to Master-Class Art students.

For Bachelor and Fine Arts programs, a mandatory requirement to qualify for the final examination is the completion of the first Studienabschnitt (first 4 semesters) of your studies, which is confirmed by an intermediate exam certificate.

Additionally, Bachelor program students must have a total of at least 200 ECTS to apply for the final examination. Sculpture and Painting students must have a total of at least 240 ECTS and Stage and Costume students 270 ECTS.

The application for the final thesis should be submitted at the beginning of the semester during which you plan to write the thesis. The application for the final thesis must have been submitted already by the time you apply for your final practical examination. The exact date by which you must submit your final thesis will be agreed upon with your mentor.

Master's students in Product Design and Textile and Surface Design apply for their final thesis and their practical exam at the same time.

Students enrolled in the Bachelor's programs should apply by the end of the 7th semester. Students in the Stage and Costume Design program should apply by the end of the 9th semester. The application deadlines are end of January for final examinations in the summer semester and end of June for final examinations in the winter semester.

In the Painting and Sculpture programs, the final examination takes place over the course of two semesters. Therefore, the application for the final examination should be submitted by the end of the 8th semester. The application deadlines are end of January for final examinations in the winter semester and end of June for final examinations in the summer semester.

In the Master's programs, the application for the final examination should be submitted at the end of the semester preceding the final examination semester.

You may be banned from re-registration because you must submit a certain document such as the application for the final examination or a language certificate. Other possible reasons may be too few ECTS points, unpaid library or computer studio fees, or equipment that must be returned to the Technical Equipment Rental office.

The ban will be lifted when the required documents have been submitted, a Prüfungsberatungsgespräch meeting with the chair of the examination committee of your department has taken place, or dues have been paid/equipment returned.

If proof of the above are not submitted within the regular re-registration period, a late fee of 19,94 € must be paid together with your re-registration fee.

If you miss the regular re-registration period, there is a grace period during which you may still re-register with an additional late fee of 19,94 €. If you still fail to pay your re-registration fees, you will be automatically removed from the register.

If you are unable to transfer the fees due to financial reasons, you can borrow money from the AstA. However, you must apply for the loan at the beginning of the re-registration period. 

All registered students receive a semester ticket. The fees for the semester ticket is part of the re-registration payment. 

Generally speaking, students are obligated to pay for the semester ticket. However, students can be exempted from the ticket if they: are on a leave of absence, are in the Master Class program, Master program, or studying part-time, are taking part in an internship or an exchange program for 4 consequent months and can provide proof that this will take place outside of Berlin, or have a disabled person's pass.

Students can also be exempted from the semester ticket during their final examination semester if they will be working on their final project outside of Berlin.

All students who have a low income can apply for a semester ticket subsidy. To do this, you submit the application form and all necessary documents to the RefRat at the Humboldt University. The deadlines are June to July for the winter semester and January to Feburary for the summer semester. You can find the application forms and more information at this link: http://www.refrat.de/semtix/wordpress/antrag-stellen/

If you have lost your semester ticket, you can have your ticket re-issue at a cost of 10,23€. You must fill out an application form at the Office of Student Affairs (A1.04) and a new ticket can be issued immediately.

The Studienbuch is a book in which you collect grades and signatures from professors/teachers for each module you complete. It would be best to submit copies of your completed Studienbuch pages to the Prüfungsamt once a semester to update your academic record (don't forget to bring your actual Studienbuch as well).

You must prove that your academic records are complete for the intermediate exam certificate (Zwischenprüfungszeugnis) at the end of your 4th semester and for the application for the final project. 

For students who receive financial aid or a scholarship funding, it is especially important that you submit your most recent grades every year. Otherwise, your academic transcript will not list all the modules you have completed. 

As of Winter Semester 2014/15, everyone in the Bachelor and Fine Arts programs should have received a 'Studienbuch' (with an exception of students who were in their final year at that point in time). Master students do not have a 'Studienbuch'. 

You must submit your grades personally at the Examination Office. This is done by submitting photocopies of the pages of your Studienbuch and presenting your original Studienbuch at the office. Please don't forget to write your name and student number on each of the pages of your Studienbuch before you make a photocopy. 

If you have lost your Studienbuch, you can pick up a new one. However, if you had grades in the book that had not been submitted to the Examination Office, you will have to collect them again from your professors and/or instructors.

All students who do not receive a Studienbuch (MA students and students in their last year of studies as of WS14/15) must collect their grades for completed modules using Modulbescheinigung forms. These can be picked up at the Examination Office (room A1.05) but also downloaded from the KHB website.

You can apply to study part-time under these following conditions:

• During pregnancy,
• To care for a family member who is dependent on you,
• In case of professional activity,
• To care for a child under 10 years of age,
• In case of a disability,
• While fulfilling the duties of a mandate at the academy, student council, or the student union,
• Any other serious reasons.

Deadline:
The application for a half-time study must be signed by the faculty coordinator and submitted to the office of student affairs (Referat Studienangelegenheiten) before the re-registration deadline (Rückmeldefrist), by the beginning of the semester (April 1st/ Oct 1st) at the lates. In addition to the application, you must submit a relevant proof for the reason that you have given. 

Part-time students at the weissensee academy of art have the same status as full-time students. They must pay the full semester fees.

However, part-time Spacial Strategy students only pay half of the full-time fees.

Studying part-time may have consequences in areas and services provided outside of the academy. These should be clarified with the relevant institutions or organizations in advance.

Part-time students of the weissensee academy of art are not able to receive financial aid from BaföG. However, it is possible to apply for Hartz IV financial aid.

Third country nationals who require a student visa are not permitted to study part-time, as visas cannot be issued/extended for part-time students. 

As soon as you have completed all the requirements of the first segment of your studies, an intermediate examination certificate will be issued. For this, all the necessary proof of completed modules or copies of your Studienbuch must have been submitted to the Examination Office (Prüfungsamt).