Step 1: Living in Magdeburg

The most important thing in order to live and study in Magdeburg is your accommodation! After you found one, you need a contract for your accommodation. Without it you cannot register at the Citizens Office (Registration Office) and you cannot be enrolled either.

There are two ways to find an accommodation. You can either try to get a place in the dormitory or look for a room by yourself.

    1. Studentenwerk: You can apply for a flat/room at the Studentenwerk. The capacity of housing in the dormitory is limited, thus you should apply for it as early as possible. If you have any questions, the Studentenwerk can give you more information. If you want to stay for a short time in Magdeburg, you should apply for a furnished apartment.
      You can find more information about the application process for a room in the dormitory on the website of the Studentenwerk.

    2. Private housing associations: Due to limited places, not all students can get a place in the dormitory. Therefore we have put together a list with some housing associations. The University provides a list of FAQ regarding accommodation here.
      Please keep in mind to ask, if the rooms are furnished or at least whether they have a furnished kitchen. Buying your own kitchen equipment can be very expensive. Otherwise you should look for a flat to share.

In both cases you will have to pay a deposit for your room or apartment. For many private landlords it can be around 1-3 base rents (rent without bills).  You get the money back when you move out if the accommodation is in the state it was in before you moved in.

If you should come across any problems while searching for an accommodation, do not hesitate to contact our Accommodation Assistants, you can find their contact details here. You can also address your matter to wohnung@studentenwerk-magdeburg.de.

If you are in need of accommodation for a very short period of time you can also check our list of available Hotels in Magdeburg.

 

Rundfunkbeitrag (License fee)

Additionally, the so-called "Rundfunkbeitrag" (License fee for broadcasting) has to be paid for every flat in Germany. The fee is 18,36 Euro per month and finances the public service broadcasting companies (such as ARD, ZDF) and everything they offer. The License fee has to be paid by international students as well, regardless whether you actually use the broadcasting service or not. It also does not matter if you are part of an student exchange program like ERASMUS or a scholarship holder. If you are staying in a shared flat, the License fee has just to be paid once for the whole flat (the amount of people sharing the flat does not matter). Normally one person registers the whole flat for the License fee and collects the proportionate amount of the fee from his roommates. Before you sign your rental contract you should address this issue in order to avoid unnecessary problems later on.

If you got an accommodation at one of the Student dormitories, a distinction has to made between rooms in apartments that work like shared flats and rooms that can be entered though a public hallway. The rooms that can be entered directly from the public hallway are regarded as flats and therefore the whole fee has to be paid. The apartments that work as shared flats can also be regarded as such.

More detailed information about the Licence fee can be found here.

Last Modification: 21.03.2024 - Contact Person: Webmaster