Requirements for the teacher training programme

If you do not have a general higher education entrance qualification or a previous qualification recognised as equivalent under the state's equivalence ordinance, but have training and appointment, you may be eligible for university admission for professionally qualified (person).

Allow sufficient time for preparation. Preparing for the examination in the time between applying for the access examination and the application deadline for a study place is generally not sufficient for the teacher training programme. The recommended timetable for the primary school teaching degree programme (PDF) provides an overview.

As a rule, a subject-specific higher education entrance qualification or entrance qualification for universities of applied sciences is not sufficient to study to become a teacher at Bielefeld University. You can catch up on your (German) 'Abitur' or apply for a teaching degree programme with another degree already completed. You may also be eligible for university admission for professionally qualified (person).

You may also be able to study at Bielefeld University if you have a foreign university entrance qualification or have completed a degree programme abroad. As the teacher training programmes are taught in German, you will need to provide proof of an appropriate language level. For further information (e.g. on how to apply), please contact the International Student Office. If you have already obtained a foreign university degree, you can find further information under Studying after a foreign university degree.

Admission restrictions are imposed if there are likely to be more applicants than study places. Admission is then usually based on the numerus clausus (NC), i.e. your A-level grade. There are ALWAYS admission restrictions for teacher training programmes, even if your subjects may be NC-free. The compulsory component of a teacher training course is the restricted-admission version of degree programme in educational sciences. You must therefore always apply for a teacher training programme, even if your subjects are admission-free.

For some study programme variants, proof of aptitude must be provided for enrolment or further approval requirements must be met. Further information on this can be found under the approval requirements for the respective subject in the programme information. Such an aptitude assessment is required, for example, for the subjects Art, Music and Latin . Approval requirements must also be met for sport. The programme information provides you with an overview of special approval requirements and the aptitude test.

Up to and including the winter semester 2028/29, the Latinum is also required for some subjects for a degree with the career goal of "Teaching at grammar school/comprehensive school".
The following language skills must be demonstrated for the Master's degree in teaching at grammar schools and comprehensive schools:

• Knowledge at the level of the "minor" Latinum (history)
• Knowledge at the level of the "minor" Latinum or the Graecum (Philosophy)
• Latinum and Graecum (Latin).

All Latinum requirements apply exclusively to the Gymnasium/Gesamtschule school type (not for primary schools or Hauptschule, Realschule, Sekundarschule and Gesamtschule).

From the summer semester 2029, proof of knowledge at the level of the "minor" Latinum or Graecum is already required for enrolment in the respective Master's programme (and not only for its completion). For the transition to the Master's up to and including the winter semester 2028/29, proof of knowledge at the level of the "minor" Latinum or Graecum is still only required for the completion of the Master's of Education.

An overview of all special approval requirements and aptitude tests is summarised in the study information.

The first step is to choose the right Bachelor's degree.

Each of these degrees has a compulsory component: educational sciences.

In the primary school sector, there are even several compulsory components: Educational Sciences OR Educational Sciences/Integrated Special Needs Education AND Elementary Literacy AND Elementary Mathematics.

As educational sciences are subject to admission restrictions (as are some subjects), a successful application is always required for a teacher training programme. You must therefore apply for at least the subject Educational Sciences.

Application instructions are provided by Campus Support.

If there are still study places available at the end of the regular admission procedure, these will be allocated via the so-called lottery procedure. Applicants must apply separately for the lottery procedure within the application deadline . For the lottery procedure, a separate application must be submitted for each desired subject.

Frequently asked questions about application and enrolment and the answers can be found in the portal for prospective students.