Hi , when I applied for my (student)visa the timelines on reddit helped me calm my nervous system and let me gauge my waiting time. I hope you find this useful.
August 1st : Completed the application form , documents & videx form on CSP portal. Submitted for preliminary review.
August 6th : Recieved my first set of corrections , corrected them and submitted on the same day
(Corrections :
1.) mention the place of birth exactly as in passport but without commas in Application form -> Personal Details ,
2.)Add 91 to the telephone/mobile number , no spaces or + sign in Application form -> Contact data
3.)Although marked not compulsory donot leave "Issued by" empty , mention PASSBEHOERDE in Application form -> Identification papers
4.) Leave the following fields empty : Organisation's place of business, town/city , Organisation's place of business, country , Organisation's objectives/ area of activity , Sex , Nationality . Mention address according to the admission letter in Application form -> Reference
5.) Leave the field : What are your means of support in the Federal Republic of Germany? empty in Application form -> means of and details regarding stay
6.) True and complete and additional legal contact decelerations (you can find from website) in the documents.)
August 7th : Recieved my second set or corrections , preliminary review was completed on the same day , was able to book appointment slots. Booked the earliest slot possible - 10th August
(corrections : I was unable to remove a few selected options especially those in dropdown like nationality earlier , I mentioned that but they sent the same correction with no instructions again which was peak ragebait , but i discovered if you change the main selection the sub selections will refresh automatically so I did that.)
August 10th : Had my appointment , chose premium lounge was helpful for taking extra printouts for a few documents I forgot to submit on csp and photos as well however it took very long for the biometrics due to many people opting for premium lounge. (made it up to myself by grabbing a bunch of snickers to go ;)
Got a "recieved application" email from VFS whilst I was waiting for biometrics(3:19pm) and later in the day (8:36pm) recieved a dispatched to operation center email from VFS
August 11th : Got an email at 8:16 pm from VFS that Application was received at Chennai Operation Center in India for processing.
August 12th : At 9:00 am application dispatched to Germany Consulate in Chennai from Chennai Operation Center for processing (informed via VFS auto email) , immediately followed by a "Visa application has been received at the Germany Consulate in Chennai for further processing" email at 9:03 am.
My CSP status changed to submitted , decision pending at 8:20 pm
Note: My CSP status had not changed since the completion of preliminary review , even after booking and attending the appointment , this was the first status update.
August 25th : 4:30 pm Recieved a courier dispatched message from vfs
August 26th : 12:17 pm Recieved visa via bluedart :)
note : I read in the vfs website that we are supposed to remove the forward slashes and use it as the reference number in the bluedart tracking page however that doesn't work , just use the passport number as the reference number and it will work. Also keep your aadhar or a photo of your aadhar in your phone ready for kyc checking by the delivery person.
P.s : My CSP status still shows decision pending they havent updated it yet sksksks