Are you the first person in your family or social circle to attend university?
Welcome to the information page for first-generation students at the University of Passau. Here you will find information to help you with your studies and student life.
If you would like to find out more in person, please feel free to make an appointment on-site, online or by phone with the Academic Advice Service.
In the webinar "Essentials for Study Organisation" on Wednesday, 24 September 2025 at 2 p.m. CEST, the iStudi Coach will answer your questions about starting your studies in the winter semester 2025-26.
More information and registration under Getting Started.
At our café for (new) first-year students, you can bring questions to the Student Advisory Service and there is plenty of room for exchange and networking with other first-year students.
Refreshments will be provided.
The café is taking place on 31 October 2025, 10:00-11:30.
If you are interested, please register via Stud.IP 69044.
Many of the terms and abbreviations used at universities are highly context-specific. That is why we have collected and briefly explained them.
You can access the corresponding glossary here.
There is a lot of information for students at the University of Passau. Some of it is particularly relevant for finding out about studying at the University of Passau. Here you can find a collection of the most important pages.
Are you interested in studying at the University of Passau and would like to find out more?
We warmly invite you to our orientation events.
On the ‘Before you begin’ page, you will also find information about Passau as a location, how to apply and enrol, events and much more.
If you have decided to study at the University of Passau and are looking for information on how to start your studies, you will find it on the ‘Getting started’ page.
What else is there to experience at the University of Passau besides studying?
You can find information on this on the ‘Student life’ page.
Of course, there are also topics that arise during your studies.
The student advisory service has put together additional information for you frequently asked questions.
The ZKK (Future: Careers and Competencies) offers free events on key skills for studying and working as well as IT courses.
You can also find information on physical and mental health on the ‘Health and wellbeing’ website.
Questions often arise shortly before the end of your studies. How should you proceed?
On the ‘Graduation’ page, you will find information on starting your career, continuing with a master's or a PhD, and more.
An important topic is how to finance your studies. On the following page, you will find information about costs and financing options.
The following two pages may help you in your search.
Are you planning an internship abroad?
You can find helpful information about scholarships here. As a first-generation university student, you can get additional funding from Erasmus+.
The University of Passau has many service units that are there to help you with any questions or problems you may have. This page provides an overview of the various offices at the University.
You can make contacts via the local ArbeiterKind group in Passau. Regular networking events take place here. You can also find a mentor through the group or act as a mentor. If you would like to get involved, you can support the group during school visits and talk about your everyday life as a student.
You can find the local group via Instagram at arbeiterkind.de_passau.
The ArbeiterKind association informs pupils about the possibility of studying and accompanies them on their way from starting university to successfully completing their studies and starting their career.
You can contact the association directly via the information telephone (+49 30 679 672 750) or the ArbeiterKind website (both available in German).
You are not alone!
At the University of Passau, there are a number of people who are first-generation students themselves and will be happy to help you if you have any questions.
Would you like to make yourself visible as a first-generation academic?
Arbeiterkind has designed stickers that you can print out and use (only available in German).
Show other first-generation academics that they are not alone!
