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International foundation programme (VSI)
Alternative entry routes for international applicants
Saarland University's VSI foundation programmes offer a route into higher education for those international students whose school-leaving qualifications do not meet the requirements for direct entry to an undergraduate degree programme. There are three VSI international foundation programmes on offer at Saarland University: 'VSI Humanities', 'VSI Business Science and Economics' and 'VSI MINT' (The German acronym 'MINT' is equivalent to the English acronym 'STEM', which stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics).
Students who successfully complete one of the VSI foundation programmes will automatically receive a subject-specific entrance qualification for undergraduate study at Saarland University. The degree programmes that can be studied will depend on which foundation programme the student completed:
- VSI Humanities: all non-restricted-entry Bachelor's programmes at the Faculty of Humanities
- VSI MINT: the 'Bachelor Plus MINT' programme
- VSI Business Science and Economics: Business Administration (B.Sc.), Digital Business Administration (B.Sc.), Business Informatics (B.Sc.)
The foundation programme is divided into two stages: an initial preparatory phase and a subsequent higher education access phase in which the student begins a trial period studying in their chosen field. How long a student spends in the preparatory phase will depend on their German language proficiency and on subject-specific entry requirements. In individual cases, it may be possible to shorten the preparatory phase or to dispense with it entirely. After successfully completing the access phase, students can continue studying in their selected programme.
Please note that after completing an international foundation programme, you will not be able to switch to studying an alternative degree programme, such as Medicine. The subject-specific entrance qualification only provides access to a limited number of undergraduate degree programmes at Saarland University. If you wish to enrol for any other degree programme, you will need to have your school-leaving certificate officially assessed and recognized by the relevant competent authority early enough for you to meet the relevant application deadline.
For more information on topics such as obtaining preliminary review documentation from uni-assist, getting your academic credentials recognized or to find answers to other frequently asked questions, please go to our useful quick links page for international students.
The preliminary review documentation procedure at uni-assist
Before you can apply to join an international foundation programme, you will first need to obtain preliminary review documentation (VPD) from uni-assist for one of the Bachelor's degree programmes listed below. Please select a degree programme that is associated with the VSi foundation programme that you wish to join.
- VSI Humanities: all non-restricted-entry Bachelor's programmes at the Faculty of Humanities
- VSI MINT: the 'Bachelor Plus MINT' programme
- VSI Business Science and Economics: Business Administration (B.Sc.), Digital Business Administration (B.Sc.), Business Informatics (B.Sc.)
German (not required)
You do not need to speak and write German in order to apply for a place on one of our international foundation programmes, as our VSI programmes include German language courses at a range of proficiency levels from A0 to B1.2 (CEFR). Students who have completed the German language course or who already have at least B2 proficiency will progress to a more advanced German course (CEFR level B2 to C1) that will prepare them for academic study in Germany.
The application process
The application is a two-stage process:
- The first step is to request preliminary review documentation (VPD) from uni-assist that confirms that you qualify for indirect access to study at a German university. You must tell uni-assist which subject you plan to study in the access phase of your VSI foundation programme and in your later undergraduate degree programme. It typically takes around six weeks for uni-assist to process a VPD request.
- Once you have received your preliminary review documentation, you may apply via Saarland University's SIM portal for a place on one of the university's VSI foundation programmes.
You can apply to join the VSI foundation programme in the winter or in the summer semester. The application periods are:
- beginning of June until 15 July (for admission in the winter semester)
- beginning of December until 15 January (for admission in the summer semester)
Required documentation
Please submit the following documents in digital form (e.g. as a scan):
- Preliminary review documentation (VPD) from uni-assist
- School-leaving certificate (in the original language plus an officially certified translation into German, English or French; if the original document is in German, English or French, no translation is required)
- Valid identity document or passport
- Proof of proficiency in German (if applicable)
- If applying for the foundation programme 'VSI Business Science and Economics': Proof of proficiency in English (at least B1)
- If applying for the foundation programme 'VSI Humanities': Proof of proficiency in other languages (as required)
Please address any questions to:
Michael Aulbach
ISZ Saar (International Study Centre Saar)
Tel.: +49 681 302-2850
anmeldung-isz(at)uni-saarland.de