Visa, Late Arrival, Postponement of Admission

Please be aware that waiting times for visa appointments in your country may be considerable. We therefore strongly recommend planning accordingly. Late arrival is not advisable, as you should not miss the mandatory On-Boarding sessions that take place during the week prior to the start of classes.

For the exact start date of classes, please consult the faculty's official Academic Calendar available on our website.

If you receive your visa later than expected, please refrain from requesting a so-called “Late Arrival Letter,” as our school does not issue such documents. All relevant information is already included in the attachment to your OVGU Admission Letter. We kindly ask you to review this document again carefully. 

In most cases, the most appropriate option is to submit a new application for the upcoming semester via the myOVGU portal. When applying again, please upload your previous admission letter together with the required documents.

Please note that ORBA and IMME are limited-admission study programs. In such cases, you must decide whether to reapply for the next semester  - no promise that you will be on the list of succesful applicants once again - or to enroll and arrive as soon as possible. The university cannot assume responsibility for any academic or organizational difficulties on campus resulting from missed classes or introductory sessions.

Students are strongly advised to arrive in Magdeburg before the On-Boarding week to make sure they can get used to the life and climate in Germany. No deferrals can be granted for individual students, as classes must begin punctually in accordance with strict regulations.

Be informed, that our university is an in-person teaching institution. Visa are issued for in-person studies. 

Anyway, for all students it is very important to be present in Magdeburg, on campus. Doesn't matter that we understand your problems to get a student visa in time. Here on campus, we can support you much better with a stable internet connection, library access, study counseling, student fellow contacts, and no time differences.

Our popular SIMP-SON buddy program is offering several in-person networking events. From experience, we can tell that students taking online classes, studying from home, and struggling a lot with their studies because of several issues. We even had students applying for a visa who received a rejection because they could not prove that they were studying.

Arrive by October 1/ March 31, latest, and take part in our mandatory introduction session and classes during the 
ON-BOARDING WEEK. The program can be found online: www.isp.ovgu.de

Students arriving later we have to inform you that your arrival during the semester is causing a lot of stress. Classes will start promptly, and late arrival students will miss important lecture content, information, language registration deadlines, etc. The exam registration is taking place in November, and before you can register you should try out the chosen compulsory elective courses (master's). Furthermore, the workload of modules (courses) is calculated from the start of the semester. Entering classes later is possible but can not be recommended. Courses are fast going, challenging, and must be repeated on own-responsibility. Arrival in November, December/ April can't be recommended because of the difficult accommodation search and on-going studies. Better arrive in February, March/ September and start your studies with the summer/winter term.
On an extra semester must be counted.

Because of these circumstances, we cannot provide an official Late Arrival statement to students. In the worst case, you have to reapply for your master's.  But be informed that ORBA and IMME students have to take part in the selection procedure again. Admission cannot be promised.

However, we hope that you can solve your visa and arrival matters in time and start your studies at OVGU as soon as possible.

All information about studies, schedules, and events will be published on our study program website. 
Please check out the “ON-BOARDING" section by the middle of September/March on www.isp.ovgu.de  

Unfortunately, we cannot influence, expedite, or intervene in visa decisions.

Please note that the university is also unable to appeal visa refusals or provide explanations on behalf of applicants. All visa decisions are made solely by the responsible German Embassy or Consulate.

We wish you the best of luck with your visa application and hope to welcome you to our university soon.

Arrival Note:
The date of arrival of enrolled OVGU students lays fully in personal responsibility.  We have no time restrictions for the arrival of our students. Nevertheless, we advise you to arrive on campus before your classes start, to take part in mandatory On-Boarding sessions. Moreover, we are a on campus university, lectures and classes are held in person, therefore the student should be present at campus, in classes during their studies. Visa will be issued by the Foreigner Offices only for taking classes on campus.

Late Arrival:
Please make sure you inform yourself of the workings of the faculty, the Examination Office of the faculty, lectures and classes.

You are required to complete the online enrollment.  Planning your arrival in Magdeburg note, that it is your responsibility to catch up on any missed coursework or academic obligations if your physical arrival is delayed.

No. The university does not issue Late Arrival Letters.

If you are unable to arrive on time due to visa processing delays or other reasons, please note that the university cannot provide individual letters to support a late arrival. Students are responsible for ensuring that they obtain their visa and arrive in time for the start of their studies.

Please carefully read your admission letter and the attachment provided with it. These documents outline the available options and important information for students who may not be able to arrive before the start of the semester.

Alternatively, you may consider applying at a later date if the visa situation in your country improves or once you have secured a visa appointment.

We recommend applying for your visa as early as possible and regularly checking the processing status with the responsible German Embassy or Consulate.

At a Glance Note:
We may not issue individual "LateArrival" letters for embassy appointments,  .... and repeated requests  will NOT change these regulations.

Your visa will be issued too late? 
De-register from the list of OVGU students and reapply for the next up-coming semester via myovgu portal.
Please provide your previous admission letter as a download, and your personal OVGU student ID (matricel number).

A postponement of studies is possible, but not automatically. The follwoing steps will apply:

You must apply again for the next semester by  re-registering via myovgu portal. Observe the application deadlines. The application portal is open from May 15/ December 15 (winter/summer semester application).

An application via Uni-Assist is only necessary if you wish to apply to another study program.

Applicants for NC degree programs can also apply again, but must participate again in the selection process again. That includes the Motivation Letter grading. No AI!

Please make sure to inform yourself about important rules and regulation about your study program. A special personal On-Boarding cannot be provided for late arriving students because of very limited staff. However presentation downloads, academic dates, buddy program information, and video tutorials  etc. will be downloaded for your information on the following website: www.isp.ovgu.de    

Students who arrive late are expected to inform themselves (SELF-STUDIES) about the content of On-Boarding sessions and their content via the available downloads,  and take notes about any questions they may have, which can be addressed at the ISP Office after their arrival at the faculty. 

All late arrival students should see their student advisor in building 22, part B, room 006 (ISP Office) as soon as they arrive in Magdeburg to make sure to be prepared for their studies. 

On-Boarding Session are usually offered in the hybrid format. Check out the On-Boarding schedule for the Zoom links.

Of course we understand that you are very excided about your new start and life in germany. Hpowever, please note, that ...
Germany is a culture, where written regulations and official documents are deemed binding, whereas verbal communications serve only as supplementary guidance. Communication is offered/and taken by clients usually for very serious and complicated matters. In this way in Germany staff is calculated and provided.
However, regular counseling hours for students are offered. Please inform yourself of the hours and dates at the website.

Before contacting us ...
Kindly read all the information and instructions provided on the official website and in any email you received from us. We have many studentns contacting us by not checking out seriuously enough the provided information. As our education system required critical thinking we usally do not answer 100% directly, personalized. We state situations and regulations. Please go through our information always by keeping this in mind and kindly do not seek personlised answers.

Please contact us only if ...
 You did not find the information you needed in email communications or at the website of the Faculty, OVGU. 

Please do NOT contact us for ...
Embassy appointment scheduling
Visa status updates
Requests to “speed up” the process
Repeated late-arrival confirmations

Just arrive on OVGU campus, see us in building 22, part B, room 006 for a warm welcome and up-date.

Please note that it may take 1–2 weeks to receive a response to your email inquiry. During this time, we kindly ask that you refrain from calling us, or sending more emails.

While we always make every effort to reply as promptly as possible, response times may vary depending on the number of inquiries.

We appreciate your patience and understanding.

Please send your email to one office only, specifically to the responsible office, and avoid including additional contacts in CC or BCC.

We usually respond to inquiries within one working week. However, receiving messages via BCC creates unnecessary confusion and additional workload for staff at OVGU. It significantly affects our ability to efficiently support students and to properly manage academic and administrative processes.

Therefore, we kindly ask you to refrain from using BCC and to ensure that communication is directed to our office - The ISP Office - only. This helps us maintain clear, efficient, and timely support for all students.

Thank you for your understanding and cooperation!

We are sad to learn that you did not succed in organizing your arrival in Magdeburg. Of yourse we understand you would like to de-register from the list of OVGU students as this is causing a lot of problem and money.

Please fill in the floowing form and send it to the OVGU Enrolment Office soon as possible.

OVGU's de-registration application: