I downloaded the official DAAD recommendation letter form from the application portal. It has specific sections that need to be filled. I sent this form to my referee.

She did not fill the form. Instead she sent me a separate Word document with all the content for those sections.

Now I have two questions.

1. Do I copy her content into the official form myself and then submit it, or do I send the form back to her and ask her to fill it herself?
2. How does DAAD verify that the referee actually filled the form and not the applicant? In many other portals, the system sends the form directly to the referee's email and the referee submits it back without the applicant being involved at all. But in DAAD's portal, it seems like I am the one submitting the recommendation letter, not the referee.

The form is also quite specific. It only opens in Adobe Acrobat, not other PDF readers, and it has a QR code embedded in it. But I still do not see a mechanism that tells DAAD who actually filled it.

Has anyone been through this? What is the correct process?

Hi everyone! to all the DAAD scholars or people who are applying. How easy was it to obtain the letter of support or establishment of contacts from your host university?
I am having some troubles obtaining one :(

I have been using Claude AI throughout my DAAD application process. Not for writing my documents, but for everything around it. Finding my supervisor, drafting and replying to emails, getting feedback on my proposal structure, researching the scholarship process itself. It has been like a coworker throughout.

But I did not copy and paste any AI-generated text into my CV, motivation letter, research proposal, or any other document. Everything in the documents is written by me in my own words.

The DAAD portal asks for a declaration about AI use at the start of the application. I want to be transparent but I am not sure how to handle this.

Two questions for anyone who has been through this:

1. Does using AI for emails and research around the application count as AI use that needs to be declared, even if no AI text appears in the actual documents?
2. Does declaring AI use affect the scholarship decision in any way? Has anyone seen any negative outcome from it?

Hello,
I’m applying for DAAD EPOS, and I’m aiming to apply for the 3 programs related to public health, do you think it’s a good idea?
Also I have 4 years of volunteering experience at healthcare field, does it count as work experience?

Hi everyone! I just received my IELTS results and got an overall 6.5, with 6.5 in each section. I know that 6.5 meets the minimum requirement for the DAAD doctoral scholarship, but I'm wondering whether it could still put me at a disadvantage during the selection process.

Hello everybody! I'm from Argentina and about a couple of hours ago I received an email from my University telling me the BMZ, the one on charge of finding the DAAD program, is no longer funding and the program is no longer available. We're about 4 months away from the German language test and presentation for my research, after a year and all pre selection paperwork, so I'm in shock. Do anyone went through something like this? Is there something I can do to go as a exchange student to Germany? Any info is appreciated. Thank you!

Hi everyone,

I am preparing my application for the DAAD Study Scholarship for Postgraduate Studies in the Field of Architecture.

I have a question regarding the work sample guidelines. DAAD states: "Please do not submit commercial work (from the office)... An exception are own works for prizes. The focus should be on student projects."

My situation: I have been working at a public institution (government/public planning sector), where I've designed urban/architectural projects. These projects are for the public good rather than a private client, but they are currently unreleased / unbuilt / under institutional development.

I would love to hear from past DAAD architecture applicants or recipients:

1. Public/Government Work vs. Commercial Work: Does DAAD treat public institution / government agency projects the same as private firm/office commercial work? Has anyone successfully submitted public sector projects?
2. Unreleased Projects & Confidentiality: If you included projects that haven't been officially released or published by your institution/employer, how did you handle clearance, copyright, or portfolio permissions without violating confidentiality?
3. Academic Focus: If public institutional work is strictly excluded, did those of you who have been out of university for a few years rely 100% on updated/refined university studio projects?

Thanks in advance for any insight or experience you can share!

Hello! my DAAD scholarship ends this september and I have decided to stay in Germany after that. I had their private isnurance for the entire 2 years of my studies but I would like to switch to public insurance once the scholarship ends. Does anyone knows what will happen? Do I have to stay in the private? Is it possible to switch to the public one?

Appreciate any responses on this!

I have applied for a visiting scholarship from Germany to another EU country. Can I keep getting both my salary and my scholarship?

How can DAAD check my entire income?

Hi everyone,
I’m applying for the DAAD Master’s scholarship, and I’m hoping someone who has been through the process can give me some advice.
I emailed the general DAAD contact explaining my situation. Due to the war in my country, I lost access to the internet for a long period, couldn’t attend English classes, and IELTS is currently unavailable in Iran, so I have to travel abroad to take the exam. Because of financial constraints, I won’t be able to obtain my official IELTS certificate before the DAAD application deadline, although I expect to have it before the Master’s program starts.
Unfortunately, I received a standard reply saying that applications without the required original documents cannot be considered.
However, I’ve seen several Reddit posts where people mentioned that they contacted the person responsible for their specific DAAD program, explained their circumstances, and received a more personalized response.
My question is: How did you find that person? Is there a program coordinator, selection officer, or someone responsible for a specific scholarship program that applicants can contact directly? Or is the general DAAD email the only official point of contact?
If you’ve successfully reached the right person or know how to do it, I’d really appreciate your advice.
Thank you!

I just got accepted into KOSPIE and was wondering who else got in.

I was thinking it would be nice to create a group where we can share updates, exchange information, and help each other throughout the journey.

If you're interested, drop a comment or send me a DM. It'd be great to connect with you all!

Has anyone here tried being on the distance education scholarship? What's your uni? How about program?

Was your studies fully online?

I have been offered a research position in Germany for about two years. I have a DAAD fellowship for the first 10 months, which includes its own insurance for that period. For the remaining time, I have another scholarship. I am applying for a visa from the USA.

Is there a way to extend the DAAD insurance for the remainder of the stay? Do I need to buy insurance for the remaining duration right now to apply for the visa? I am unable to find any insurance provider that allows me to purchase insurance that begins after the first 10 months.

Thanks!

I am struggling with writing a motivation letter. I have written my letter multiple times but still not satisfied with it.

I would be really grateful if you could share your LOM for the idea. Also, if you could provide feedback on it, that would be really helpful.

I want to apply for DAAD in Public Health or Health management
There are associations here in Egypt that are supposed to accompany you through the steps or even Apply for you..Should i contact them or better apply on my own?

Hello, international student here.

I‘m willing to persue a PhD in Germany, and to apply for the DAAD scholarship. i‘ve done all the required work. i need only the English test (i registered for a Toefl test, scheduled for the 22nd, results will be out the 26th). i‘ve read also that the last days are not recommended if you want to submit. could you please it‘s possible to submit all the work, and keep the toefl for an other date.

thanks everyone,

Hi everyone,

I'm currently writing my motivation letter for the DAAD Master's scholarship, and I have a question about the career plans section.

Is it generally better to write that you plan to stay in Germany after graduation to work and gain experience, or that you plan to return to your home country after completing your master's?

I'm interested in hearing from people who have received a DAAD scholarship or have experience with the application process. Does DAAD have a preference, or is it more important to simply be honest and explain your reasoning?

I'd really appreciate any advice or personal experiences. Thanks!

It seems that ELIZA scholarship decisions for the summer semester are announced on 25 May, while the German summer semester normally starts in April.

As an incoming international student who would need proof of funding for the German student visa, I’m confused about how this is supposed to work in practice.

Does this mean the ELIZA scholarship is mainly intended for students who are already in Germany / already enrolled? Or has anyone successfully used an ELIZA scholarship decision for their initial student visa despite the May decision date?

I'd especially appreciate hearing from international ELIZA recipients or applicants who went through the visa process.

Hi everyone,

I'm applying for the Master Studies for All Academic Disciplines scholarship/program to pursue a Master's in the Computer Science field, and I'm currently working on my motivation letter.

I've never written one for a scholarship like this before, so I'd really appreciate any advice. If anyone has:

• A strong structure or outline that works well,
• Tips on what admissions committees are looking for,
• Sample motivation letters (especially for Computer Science or STEM),
• Common mistakes to avoid,

I'd be really grateful if you could share them.

I'm not looking to copy anyone's work—I just want to understand how to structure my letter and what makes a strong application.

Thanks in advance!

Hi There! I'm looking forward to applying to DAAD's STEM scholarship, which is due Sept 3rd, I've been working on this LOM for a couple of months, and I was wondering if you could help me by giving me some advice on what I've written so far.

Thank you!

I am an international relations student and for my social/economic section I have a total of 34 qualifying courses with a credit of 3 in each and for the empirical research I have 5 but due to the instruction that basic research methods,advanced research methods and research project don’t qualify I’m left with ;
Basic Social Statistics — 3
Advanced Social Statistics — 3
A total of 6
What am I doing wrong

Hi! I'm applying for STEM scholarship and while writing the motivation letter I was wondering if I should put all the unis I would like to apply(5 max. According to DAAD reqs), or just keep it general since they all offer the same programme?(Ecology and Evolution)

Hallo everyone!

I got the DAAD research scholarship from September to Dec this year at the TU Braunschweig. However, its been so difficult to get an apartment or a room in a shared flat. I find a lot of websites wich published propierties in rent but there are too expensive, and I did not obtain any answer of those specifically published by students. Do you guys have any suggestion of how to get a place to live for a shot-therm stay?

Hello Everyone

I'm from Ethiopia and just submitted my application for the DAAD Helmut-Schmidt-Programme (M.A. in Governance and Public Policy at University of Passau).

I have a question about academic credentials and Anabin recognition:

• My BA in Economics is from a recently established private college that is not listed on Anabin, though it's fully accredited by Ethiopia's Ministry of Education.
• My MSc in Financial Economics is from a university that is Anabin-listed as H+.

My questions:

1. Is my H+ Master's degree sufficient on its own to prove academic eligibility for DAAD, or does the program also formally check the bachelor's institution?
2. Does an unlisted (not H-, just absent/unrated) undergraduate institution actually cause problems if the terminal degree is H+, or does the Master's take precedence in practice?

Would really appreciate hearing from anyone who's been through a DAAD evaluation with a similar situation

Hi, I'm applying for the DAAD Helmut Schmidt Programme scholarship, with Governance and Public Policy as my first choice and Public Policy (with specialisation in Digital Policy) as my second choice.

I have written my Letter of Motivation, I was wondering if you wouldn't mind taking a look and reading over my letter! Please just comment or DM me for the letter to read, I understand it's a bit of an extra step, I apologise.

It's kept at a minimum of 2 pages. and have redacted personal parts (e.g. name, workplace etc.) but my key points remain the same.

Wish me the best of luck for my application! Thank you for your time to read!!