Housing
The International Office of TU Dortmund University offers exchange students the service of reserving rooms in the dormitories of the Studierendenwerk Dortmund, since TU Dortmund University does not have its own residence halls, and furnished, affordable rooms are rare on the free housing market in Dortmund.
Accommodation Service
To reserve a room in a student dormitory, please fill out the form Accommodation Request, sign it and upload it in your application.
Please do not contact the Studierendenwerk Dortmund directly! The reservation of rooms for exchange students is only possible through the International Office of TU Dortmund University.
The Studierendenwerk Dortmund is a legally independent institution that is not affiliated with TU Dortmund University. Since the waiting list for a dorm room is very long, and exchange students would therefore have no chance of getting a place in the residence halls in the regular application process, TU Dortmund University has set up a cooperation agreement with the Studierendenwerk Dortmund. This service has been highly appreciated by exchange students for decades.
Students therefore sign a rental agreement with the Studierendenwerk Dortmund and not with TU Dortmund University. The rental contract will be sent by the Studierendenwerk Dortmund to the exchange students via e-mail before they arrive in Dortmund. The rental contract has to be signed and sent back to the Studierendenwerk Dortmund. You can cancel your reservation until the rental contract has been signed. After that the full rent for the first 3 months is due.
You can read through a sample rental contract ("Mietvertrag Gaststudierende (Muster)") in German and English before you arrive. You can find all information here.
The rent of the dormitories is max. 450 EUR per month including incidentals (and a regular cleaning service of the shared areas in the shared flats).
The deposit for all dormitories is 700 EUR for exchange students, which must be transferred to the Studierendenwerk Dortmund in advance in order to make a reservation. The deposit will be refunded when you move out, provided there are no defects or rent arrears.
The dormitories can only be rented for whole months. Since the rooms are reserved for a fixed period of time, there is no need to give a separate notice at the end of your stay at TU Dortmund University. If you need to terminate the rental contract before your rental end date and/or need to leave prior to the rental end date - for whatever reason -, the legal notice period of 3 months applies. You must then submit a written termination to the Studierendenwerk Dortmund. Keep in mind that you will have to pay the rest of your rent (max. 3 months) if the Studierendenwerk Dortmund does not find a new tenant until your rental contract ends.
Exchange students are accommodated in single apartments or shared flats (for two, three or four students) of the Studierendenwerk Dortmund. In all dormitories students have their own bedroom.
Single Apartments
You have your own bathroom in your apartment. Either you also have your own kitchen in your apartment, or you share a common kitchen in the hallway.
Shared Flats
You share the kitchen and the bathroom with your roommates. All shared flats are same-sex flats.
Barrier-free Rooms
The Studierendenwerk Dortmund offers barrier-free accommodation for people with disabilities. Please inform your contact at the International Office (see below) about your special needs.
Internet
There is unlimited Internet access in all dormitories through LAN.
Furniture
The Studierendenwerk Dortmund provides exchange students with a bed, desk and desk chair, a wardrobe closet, kitchen utensils, pillow and blanket (bed linen must be brought by one self, the measurements are for the pillow approx. 80 x 80 cm, for the blanket and sheet approx. 2 x 1,35 m)
Broadcasting Contribution (Rundfunkbeitrag)
In Germany, all households are charged a radio licence fee. You can find more information here.
You will find an illustrated dictionary published by Deutsches Studierendenwerk on the subject of "Everyday life and living in student dormitories" in German, English and Chinese here.
Private Accommodation Search
It is generally recommended that exchange students do not look for private accommodation, as this is usually associated with a great deal of effort and often confusing costs. Since the room contingent of the International Office is limited, the International Office is not able to find a room last minute if your search on the free housing market is not successful.
Of course, you can still start your search and find accommodation, for example, by using the addresses listed below. You can find general information about what you should consider in this Housing Guide.
TU Dortmund University has partnered with HousingAnywhere.com, an international housing platform for students and interns. Through HousingAnywhere.com you can safely book an apartment from our outgoing students or verified landlords. There is a fee for booking an apartment. You can register for a TU Dortmund University VIP profile here to receive priority information about relevant offers in Dortmund. For further questions please contact viphousinganywherecom.
Broadcasting fee
In Germany, the broadcasting fee is used to finance not only the public broadcasters, but also the state media authorities in order to ensure independent reporting.
The broadcasting fee, or more precisely the "ARD ZDF Deutschlandradio Beitragsservice", is charged for every apartment in Germany - regardless of whether broadcasting equipment is actually used or not. Exchange students must also pay the fee.
The contribution is chared per apartment and not per resident and amounts to approximately 18,36€. This means that the residents of a shared flat share the broadcasting fee.
You will receive a letter from the "Beitragsservice" requesting payment of the broadcasting fee following your registration at the city.
Exchange Students (Worldwide | ISEP | USA Program)
exchange-studentstu-dortmundde
If you have any questions regarding your exchange at TU Dortmund University, please also have a look at our FAQs