DAAD Award for Foreign Students

We would like to encourage all committed international students to present their voluntary work to us and apply for the DAAD Award. The application can be submitted directly to the International Office. Applicants need a signature of a TUD employee on the application form (e.g. lecturer in the degree program) who supports the application.

Application deadline: April 30, 2026

The award ceremony is expected to take place in October 2026.

The prize money in the amount of 1,000 EUR will be officially presented to the winner  in October 2026.

Applicants must be able to demonstrate the following criteria:

• foreign nationality and foreign school leaving certificate (graduates of German schools abroad and German Studienkollegs can also participate)
• active social or intercultural engagement during your studies at TU Dresden (voluntary or marginally paid activities at TU Dresden, e.g. with a student university group at TU Dresden or civil society engagement outside TU Dresden with a non-profit initiative, organization, association or club)
• very good academic performance
• Enrolment in an advanced stage of studies at TU Dresden (Bachelor, Diplom, Staatsexamen: at least 3rd semester, Master: at least 2nd semester)
• Support of the application by the signature of a TUD employee (e.g. lecturer in the study program) on the application form

Future graduates of TU Dresden may also be nominated for the DAAD Award, provided that their studies will not be completed before July 1st in the year of the award. The DAAD Award is not a research award and is not intended to honor a doctoral thesis.

Active social or intercultural commitment is the basis for an application for the DAAD Award. Such a commitment is often also referred to as voluntary work.

Many international students are actively involved with charitable institutions or groups within and outside TU Dresden.

For example, TU internal commitments include: the unpaid supervision of students, cultural events, or tandem and mentoring programmes. For example, you can get involved in the following initiatives and associations:

Hochschulgruppen an der TUD, Fachschaftsrat des Studiengangs, STURA (Referat Internationale Studierende), Campusbüro Uni mit Kind, Studentenwerk Dresden

TU external engagement can be found in clubs and associations, churches and foundations, private and public institutions, political parties and trade unions, initiatives, movements, projects, self-organised groups, neighbourhood networks, or self-help.

You can find more information about volunteering on the City of Dresden website:

Civic Engagement in Dresden

For the award of the DAAD Prize, the engagemente should fulfil the following criteria:

• it must take place during the time of study at TU Dresden
• it officially counts as voluntary work (= activities that are carried out for others in a self-determined and non-profit-making manner and are oriented towards the common good) and is only marginally remunerated, if at all.
• it should be of a minimum duration of 6 months. In the case of a shorter commitment, a high level of impact must be demonstrated. (e.g.: a large-scale fundraising campaign)
• written proof from a TU internal or external institution or association about the duration, scope, and nature of the social or intercultural engagement must be submitted (with official letterhead of the institution and contact details of the person issuing the letter).

• Completed and signed application form (PDF)
• CV
• Short letter of motivation (about previous life and educational background and motivation for social commitment)
• Certificate from the Examination Office stating the credits achieved so far and the average grade* achieved so far
  • A current list of grades issued and stamped by the Examination Office must also be submitted. In case that no preliminary average grade can be calculated via the Examination Office, the average grade will be calculated by the International Office in a simplified procedure (= all grades are equivalent).
• Written proof of the duration, scope and nature of the social or intercultural commitment signed by a representative of the institution/association in whose framework the commitment takes place.
  • If several commitments are to be included, please submit proof of each commitment.
• Passport / ID card (page containing personal information)
• Residence Permit for Germany (Non-EU Citizens)
• Signed declaration of consent to data protection (download data protection form).

Application Deadline: April 30, 2026

Please send your complete application documents only digitally (PDF documents, max. 10 MB) using the following e-mail address  with the subject: DAAD Prize 2026 Application

We recommend sending your application documents in encrypted form, but encryption is not mandatory. Notes on the encryption of e-mails (optional):

For secure, encrypted sending of your application documents from your private e-mail address, first register with your private e-mail address in the SecureMail portal of TU Dresden (https://securemail.tu-dresden.de/). Then you can send your application documents as an attachment to the above-mentioned e-mail address via the SecureMail portal of TU Dresden.

For secure, encrypted sending of your application documents from your TUD email address (@tu-dresden.de or @mailbox.tu-dresden.de), you first need to apply for a digital certificate. After configuring the digital certificate, send your application documents as an attachment to the above-mentioned e-mail address.

As soon as we receive your application documents, we will send you a confirmation by e-mail.