Costs of Studying in Mainz
Johannes-Gutenberg-University does not charge tuition fees for exchange students. However, you will have to pay a social fee* as all other students at a German university. The fees are some € 270 per semester. Besides, you will have to finance your everyday expenses.
You should expect monthly expenditures of a total of some € 700 for:
•ca. € 300 dormitory rent
•ca. € 70 health insurance (mandatory for students) and
•some € 330 for food, clothing and other expenditures.
(These are just approximate figures; we cannot guarantee their correctness.)
Do NOT expect to be granted a work permit to cover the costs of your stay. (Exception: citizens of certain EU-countries). As a rule of thumb, you will only get a work permit for ninety days per year. After your arrival, you should consult the local office of Bundesagentur für Arbeit for information about your work permit; but make sure that you can finance your stay in Mainz even without a paid job here! More information about employment laws (in German language only).
*Please note that the social fee is not a tuition fee. However, you cannot enrol at the University of Mainz without having paid this social fee. The fee allows you to use the dining halls and the Studentenwerk facilities and includes the student ticket, which permits you to use public transportation in Mainz, Wiesbaden and the Rhein-Main area without further costs. This obviates the need for buying a car while living in Mainz.
Proof of Financial Resources
You are required to prove to the Alien Registration Office that you can finance your living expenses during your stay in Germany without having to resort to public funds like social aid. That is, you have to supply proof that you can finance your stay with your own means.
Initial Financial Needs
You will need a certain sum every month (about € 500 to € 600) for your stay. For the first days in Mainz, you should have about € 1.600 readily available. Make sure that you have enough money on your arrival in Mainz, either in cash, traveller’s cheques, or an ATM card valid in Germany. Please note that you will only be able withdraw a certain limited sum of cash from an ATM each day using credit cards or other accepted bank cards, and that you may have to pay a high fee for each withdrawal.
You will require about € 1.600 in cash for your first days in Mainz, because you will have certain necessary expenses for living and enrolment:
•When you move into the students’ dormitory, you will have to pay, besides the first monthly rent, a deposit. This deposit is two months’ rent. You will get your deposit back after you leave the dormitory at the end of your course of studies, if it is in good order.
•Prior to enrolment you will have to pay the so-called social fee, about € 250 each term. You can find more detailed information about this on your Letter of Admission, or in the leaflet “Costs of Studying and Living in Mainz”. This contribution is not a tuition fee and has to be paid by all students. The contribution includes the costs of the student ticket.
•Health insurance companies often require you to pay the fees for an entire term, that is for six months. You will require about € 360.
Please do not transfer money from outside Germany, neither for health insurance nor security nor rent nor for the social fee. You can make all payments after your arrival in Mainz, and will save yourself high transfer fees.
Finally, you will of course require sufficient cash for your other expenditures in the first few days (for example for food and items of daily use).
Accommodation
Cost
For a comfortable room not too far from the university, students can expect to pay a monthly rent of around EUR 350,-- to 500,--. Based on past experience, demand for rooms is usually particularly high at the start of the winter semester. We recommend arranging your accommodation as soon as possible. University halls of residence offer relatively moderately priced accommodation costing EUR 300,-- to 450 monthly,--. Halls of residence are also an excellent place to meet new people, particularly for students starting their first semester.
