Heinrich Böll Foundation Scholarships Program 2018, Germany

1. Check if you are among the special focus groups in this application round
2. Gather information on the application process and the requested documents
3. Register for the online application portal
4. Provide the requested information in the Online Application Portal
5. After uploading all of your documents, submit your application before the end of the application deadline

Selection procedure, stages, criteria

The Heinrich Böll Foundation’s selection procedure for scholarship applicants consists of three stages:

1. Submission of written application documents, including a personal reference on your social commitment and an expert reference from a university lecturer or, in the case of school leavers, a schoolteacher. The expert reference, preferably in a sealed envelope, may be submitted with the applications or submitted separately by the referee.
2. An interview with a liaison lecturer, usually held at your university or near where you live (telephone interviews may also be held).
3. Attendance at a selection workshop in Berlin consisting of a one-to-one interview and a group discussion.

At each stage only a small group is selected for the next stage. You will be informed in writing of the decision reached each stage of the selection procedure. 

Stage 1: Submission of written application documents

The key criteria for assessing written applications and admission to the next stage of the procedure are:

• Very good school or college/university academic record
• Social commitment and political interest
• Convincing reasons for applying to the Heinrich Böll Foundation

Stage 2: Interview with a liaison lecturer

At this stage, a report by the liaison lecturer is added to your application. It is based on an interview of about an hour that the liaison lecturer (appointed by the Heinrich Böll Foundation) holds with you, as a rule, at the lecturer’s place of residence in Germany. In exceptional cases, the liaison lecturer may agree to hold a telephone interview. The interview with the liaison lecturer will address the applicant’s ability to study, his or her academic record and main areas of study, how he or she sees the study discipline in question and – in some cases –the applicant’s social commitment and political interest and awareness. The liaison lecturer will then write an expert report on the interview covering the above-mentioned points.

Stage 3: Selection workshop

On the basis of the liaison lecturers’ and other expert reports and the quality of the exposé applicants will be invited to attend the selection workshop. The selection workshop consists of a structured one-to-one interview and a group discussion. The main focus of the workshop will be to assess the applicants’ personal abilities as described in our Mission Statement on Promoting Young Talent. 

Documents to include with your application

A complete set of application documents needs to be uploaded to the web portal as pdf versions of the following documents.

Application form

The document’s template is available from our website and from the download center of the application portal. Please enter the following data online into the pdf form.

• Your personal data and CV
• Your motivation for are applying to the Heinrich Böll Foundation
• An outline of your motivation for studying your chosen subject and of your main areas of interest
• An outline of your social commitments and political interests
• University entrance qualification or equivalent
• A copy of your Abitur, baccalaureate or university entrance qualification, or if applicable the last three interim certificates if your Abitur certificate has yet to be issued at the time of your application 
• If required, a German or English translation by a certified translator
• A list of study certificates to date if you have already commenced your studies
• For foreign applicants for a scholarship to study for a master’s degree: Certified copy of your first-degree certificate 
• Student enrolment certificate (Immatrikulationsbescheinigung) if you already have one
•  For foreign applicants: Written proof of German language proficiency Minimum requirement: „Deutsche Sprachprüfung für den Hochschulzugang“ Level DSH 2 or „TestDaF“ Level B2
•  A third-party reference on your social commitment
• An expert reference from a university or college lecturer, or for school leavers from a schoolteacher (1–2 pages)

Important notes for applicants

... on how to present your application documents:

• All documents, including an expert report by liaison lecturer and reference letters, need to be submitted by 1st March or 1st September. Only then the application is regarded as complete and the program can work on it. Program kindly asks for understanding that incomplete applications cannot be processed. In that case, it will let you know and inform you about the next application date.
• References sent to the Heinrich Böll Foundation by the referees directly must also reach  by the respective application deadline.
• Personal and expert references by university lecturers must contain the referee’s original signature. This does not apply in case the referee sends the document directly to the Heinrich Böll Foundation by e-mail. 
• All documents have to be provided in German (we also accept references and expert reports in English)

... on data protection:

When you submit your application, your personal details will be saved electronically and later deleted in accordance with statutory data protection requirements.

For more information click "LINK TO ORIGINAL" below.