Information for US-Americans

for students at OSU

On this page, students coming from the Oregon State University to Universität des Saarlandes – Saarland University (UdS) can find detailed information on how to proceed.

Application

The application for Saarbrücken is done at OSU by the local coordinator, Brady Gibbons brady.gibbons@oregonstate.edu

Coming to Saarbrücken

Coming to Saarbrücken and UdS, you will find the German university system rather different from the American one.

A certain degree of independence is required when studying at Saarland University. As a student, you are rather free to put together your time table by selecting the corresponding courses. You will also need to register to courses and exams by yourself. 

Furthermore, Saarland University, like most universities in Germany, does not have tuition fees. Due to the agreement between OSU and UdS, you will only need to pay the “semester ticket”, which covers a ticket for public transport all over in Saarland, and a personal accident, theft and public liability insurance (find here further information). These fees amounts to 134,30 € in SS2024.

Should you have any questions, we would be happy to assist you!

You can contact either Dr. Soldera: f.soldera@matsci.uni-sb.de or EUSMAT: office@eusmat.net

Registration at the UdS

Once you have been accepted for the Atlantis programme and you have received your admission letter (Zulassungsbrief), you can register as a student of the saarland university through the SIM Portal as “new student”. The corresponding fee (see above) should be paid in advance.

Credit Points at UdS

In general, there is no fixed amount of ECTS Points you have to obtain. We recommend that you earn at least 36 ECTS during your time at UdS, which is quite below the average (local students should obtain 60 in one year). You should take advantage of the fact that all courses at UdS are free of charge. So the more ECTS you get here, the less you will have to pay back in the US.

Language courses

You should have a German language level of B2 when coming to Europe.

The International Study Center – Internationales Studienzentrum Saar (ISZ Saar) offers many different German language courses free of charge. These take place during the semester.

Additionally, its offers intensive German language courses in the months of September and October.
The costs for such courses for programme students amount to ca. 180€ for four weeks. However, up to 5 Atlantis students per year are exempt from these costs.

Visa

In order to study in Germany, you will have to apply for a student visa. These are issued by the German diplomatic missions responsible for your country.
You can find further information here: Student visa USA.

Please make sure to start your visa application well ahead of your departure date, as the process can take a while.

You can find a list of all German diplomatic missions in the USA here: Missions USA.

Insurance

During your stay in Germany, you must have valid health insurance. Most insurance companies offer similar services and prices. You will have to choose which insurance to take out yourself. Some insurance companies can be found on the university campus: Insurance UdS.

Costs at UdS and Saarbrücken

You will have to pay a semester fee of 134,30 € (as for SS2024), as you are excluded from the student service fee, student body fee and administration fee.

Monthly living expenses in Saarbrücken

Depending on personal lifestyles, you will need approximately 700€ – 850€/month in Saarbrücken.

  • Accommodation: Approx. 300 – 450€
  • Food: Grocery shopping is relatively cheap in Germany, given the high amount of discount supermarkets, approx. 100 – 150€.
    • Lunch at university: 2,80€ – 4,00€
    • Eating out (Main course): < 10€ for fast food/bistro, 7 – max. 20€ regular restaurant.
    • There is an obligatory TV license fee (“Rundfunkbeitrag”) in Germany which is paid per residence. It’s currently 17,50€/month.
  • Transport: A semester ticket for public transport within the Saarland is included in your registration fee.
  • Leisure: about 100€ (cinema, going out, sports)
  • Nightclub admission: 8-15€
  • Don’t forget to include the costs of personal expenses such as cosmetics, clothes, phone, books etc.

Housing in Saarbrücken

In general there are two options: You can either rent a room in a student residence or you can find your own private apartment.

Student residence
If you intend to apply for a dorm in a student residence, please make sure that you send back the filled form by the due date.

Student Residence

If you intend to apply for a dorm in a student residence, please make sure that you send back the filled form by the due date.

Application Deadline
Winter term
15th July
Summer Term
15th December
Price Range280€ – 350€
Security Deposit“Kaution” The amount of the deposit is usually one month’s rent.

For student residences, please check: www.studentenwerk-saarland.de or: www.waldhausweg7.de

You can also check these links:

Flat-Share: “Wohngemeinschaft” (WG)

People live together in one flat in order to reduce costs. Finding a suitable flat share will depend on your personality, as the residents often have little “interviews” to find out if the person will fit in. You will need to contact them personally.  The prices for private accommodation in Saarbrücken may range between 200€ -350€ per month, depending on how close you live to the city centre and on the number of roommates you have.

For private accommodation you can check:

Downloads und Links

Important documents for your studies in Saarbrücken: 

Application Form

Links of partners:

Links for International Students:

Links for accommodation can be found here.

Language Courses:

Visa:

Health insurance in Oregon:

http://studenthealth.oregonstate.edu/internationalplan/

Help