Regardless of your status at the university, you are never guaranteed to find a job to cover your living costs during your stay in Germany. You should therefore be prepared to live off personal savings, support from parents or relatives or scholarships!
In addition, the general rule in Germany is that social security contributions must be paid on monthly incomes of €556 or more. Students must pay tax on their income from € 12,096 per year (as of February 2025).
As soon as students work more than 20 hours per week for more than 26 weeks per year, they no longer qualify for student status in terms of tax and social security contributions.
Jobs at the THU
- Students may work a maximum of 44 hours/month in a study-related job at the TH Ulm. The term for such a job is “student assistant/studentische Hilfskraft”. Most job offers at the universities are for students in higher semesters. At the THU, Master's students can work a maximum of 36 hours per month as a “research assistant/wissenschaftliche Hilfskraft”.
- Doctoral students can work at a university as a “research employee/wissenschaftliche*r Mitarbeiter*in”. The scope of work is determined by the supervisor of the doctoral thesis.
- Scholarship holders of a German organization should inform themselves about the guidelines.
Off-campus jobs without a work permit
All EU citizens have an unlimited work permit in Germany. Foreign students without a work permit may work a maximum of 140 full days (= 8 hours/day) or 280 half days (= 4 hours/day) per academic year. In addition, students may not work more than 20 hours per week during the lecture period, otherwise they will lose their health insurance cover. For this reason, and to avoid interfering with your studies, it is advisable to work during the lecture-free period. Graduates can look for a suitable job for up to 18 months after graduation. During this period, the same employment regulations apply as for students.
Off-campus jobs with a work permit
Students who want to work more than 20 hours per week need a work permit from the employment agency (Agentur für Arbeit) and the immigration authority (Ausländerbehörde). Normally, only advanced students are granted a work permit if they want to work in an area related to their field of study. They also need a so-called “clearance certificate/Unbedenklichkeitsbescheinigung” from their university. This confirms that they have successfully completed their studies up to the current point in time and that they have no restrictions on working in a study-related job.
Job platforms
Internships/Internship semesters
- International students at THU can contact the Internship Office of their degree program and the International Office if they need support in finding an internship.
- You can find out about internships here:
- Find out about the companies at internship or job fairs and speak directly to the HR managers.
- Make it in Ulm - Job fair for foreign students in May at the IHK Ulm
- Career fair in October at the THU Prittwitzstraße
