The SBW Berlin scholarship is a small award from a Berlin charity for international students who already do social or non-profit work at home. It pays €480 a month, gives you a furnished room in a shared student flat in Berlin, covers tuition fees, and may pay your journey to Germany and home again. It funds a bachelor’s or master’s in Berlin or Potsdam for up to 48 months. In return, you run a social project for your home-country partner organisation during your studies, then go home and work on it for at least 18 months, or repay the scholarship.
There is no deadline. SBW Berlin takes applications all year and fills its 20 places as they become free each semester. The first step is unusual: the non-profit you work with sends a recommendation letter to SBW, and only then do you get the application form. This guide follows the April 2025 guidelines, the latest version published by SBW at the time of writing.
SBW Berlin scholarship summary
- Provider: SBW Berlin, a non-profit in Berlin
- Places: 20 in total, refilled as they become vacant
- Where you study: a university or university of applied sciences in Berlin or Potsdam
- Age: 18 to 30
- Minimum grades: equal to a German 2.0 (often B+, upper second class, or 80%)
- Weekly project work: 2 to 8 hours
- Deadline: none; rolling applications
- Application fee: none
What the SBW Berlin scholarship covers
| Benefit | Details |
|---|---|
| Accommodation | A furnished room in a shared student flat run by SBW in Berlin-Neukölln |
| Living allowance | €480 a month (adjusted if you receive BAföG) |
| Tuition fees | Covered; a deductible may apply if fees are above the national average |
| Travel | Possible contribution to your journey to Berlin and back home, capped at €500 within Europe and €1,000 from outside Europe |
| Return flight | Paid by SBW when you go home after graduating |
| Duration | From 30 days up to 48 months, in line with the standard study period, renewed semester by semester |
Payments start only after you move into the flat. Part-time jobs are generally not approved, and SBW will not support family members. Health insurance is not listed among the benefits in the guidelines, so budget for it; students in Germany must be insured.
With free housing and tuition covered, €480 goes further than it looks. It is still well below the €992 a month that Germany uses as the student living cost benchmark. I would call it a strong partial scholarship, not a fully funded one.
SBW Berlin scholarship eligibility
SBW funds foreign nationals from countries with a particular need for development support. The guidelines name many countries in Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe and South America as examples, without a fixed list. The other conditions are below.
| Requirement | What SBW asks for |
|---|---|
| Age | 18 to 30 |
| Social work | Paid or volunteer experience in the non-profit or social sector, backed by a letter from that organisation; working with a home-country non-profit is essential |
| Financial need | Household income no higher than the official average for your home country, or need as defined by German student finance law |
| Grades | University entrance qualification and an average equal to a German 2.0 or better |
| Stage of study | Before you start, or in your first to third semester; master’s applicants shortly before or after the bachelor’s |
| Time in Germany | No more than 18 months before you apply |
| Family | No first-degree relatives (parents or children) living permanently in Germany |
| Other scholarships | You cannot hold another scholarship in Germany (BAföG is the exception) |
| Residence status | A German student visa or residence permit for study; a copy is checked at the verification stage |
You must also apply for your university place yourself. SBW does not handle admission. For Berlin and Potsdam that usually means uni-assist or the university’s own portal, and a language certificate for the language your course is taught in.
The return-home rule and repayment
This rule decides whether the award ends up as a grant or a loan. After graduation you choose one of two options:
| Option | What you do | Repayment |
|---|---|---|
| A: go home | Return by the end of the month after you graduate and work on the project with your partner organisation for at least 18 months | None |
| B: stay in Germany | Remain after your studies | Repay the full scholarship in 12 interest-free monthly instalments, starting three months after funding ends, under a notarised plan |
Repayment also applies if funding is stopped because you missed project targets or misused the money. Funding can also end if you fail or postpone two compulsory exams. You must keep a 2.0 average each semester and send your transcripts without being asked.
Documents for the SBW Berlin application
Documents can be in German or English. Plain copies and simple translations are fine at first; certified copies come later, at the verification stage.
| Stage | Documents |
|---|---|
| Step 1 (sent by your organisation) | Recommendation letter from your non-profit or social institution, emailed as a PDF to application@sbw.berlin |
| Main application | Application form; project description of 2 to 5 pages; university entrance qualification; latest school or university certificate with grades; highest degree with grades; household income details with proof |
| If available | Admission letter from a Berlin or Potsdam university; language certificate; all university records; work and internship references; one or two academic or employer references |
| Verification (after selection) | Passport copy; visa or residence permit; uni-assist grade conversion or similar; certified copies of certificates; legalised highest qualification; language certificate if not sent earlier |
Some websites list “create an account on the SBW portal” as step one. SBW actually sends you the application link only after it has reviewed the letter from your organisation.
How to apply for the SBW Berlin scholarship
- Talk to your organisation: agree a social project that you will run from Berlin with them, and ask them to write the recommendation letter.
- Letter goes to SBW: the organisation emails it as a PDF to application@sbw.berlin.
- Wait for the link: if SBW sees promise, it sends you the application form link.
- Write the project description: 2 to 5 pages following SBW’s project template, with clear goals and a timetable.
- Submit the form and documents: SBW reviews your grades and finances.
- Interview: in person or by video, possibly with a practical task and a discussion of your six-month project plan.
- Apply for admission and your visa: run these in parallel, since SBW does not arrange them.
- Verification and contract: after selection, send certified documents; your project becomes part of the scholarship contract.
The guidelines do not say whether an SBW award letter is accepted as proof of funds for the visa. Ask SBW before your embassy appointment. Without it, you will need the standard €11,904 blocked account explained in our guide to Germany scholarships for international students, which also covers DAAD and foundation awards with higher stipends.
Is there an SBW Berlin scholarship deadline for 2027?
Rolling, but few places
SBW accepts applications all year, with no fixed deadline. There are only 20 places, awarded as they become free each semester, so a strong application can still wait a while for a slot. Start with the recommendation letter early, and apply for university admission on the university’s own deadline.
Berlin universities set their own admission deadlines, often months before the semester. If you aim for winter semester 2027/28, check your course’s dates now. If the 18-month home commitment does not suit you, the MARIHE Erasmus Mundus scholarship is one example of a funded master’s that includes time in Germany without that rule.
FAQs
How much is the SBW Berlin scholarship per month?
€480 a month, plus a free furnished room in a shared flat and tuition fees. A travel contribution of up to €500 (Europe) or €1,000 (outside Europe) is possible.
Can I study outside Berlin with the SBW scholarship?
No. Only universities and universities of applied sciences in Berlin or Potsdam qualify, and SBW does not fund study elsewhere in Germany or abroad.
Do I have to repay the SBW Berlin scholarship?
Only if you stay in Germany after your studies, drop out, or fail to meet project targets. If you go home and work on your project for at least 18 months, you repay nothing.
Can I apply if I am already studying in Germany?
Yes, if you are in your first, second or third semester and have not been in Germany for more than 18 months. You cannot hold another German scholarship at the same time.
Sources and updates
Everything here comes from SBW Berlin’s scholarship page for international students and its Guidelines and Criteria for the SBW Berlin Scholarship (April 2025 version). The €11,904 blocked account figure is the 2026 amount listed by German missions. Checked on 24 October 2026. I will update this page if SBW publishes newer guidelines.
I am Jude Chinecherem, a final-year MBBS student at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. I know what it feels like to want an education your family cannot afford. When my parents could not pay for my schooling, I had to learn how to find scholarships and work the system out on my own, with nobody to guide me. I came out the other side, and now I share everything I learned so the next student does not have to figure it out alone. This is the advice I wish someone had given me back then.
