Only a few students use BAföG and co.
According to a study, most students in Germany are unable or unwilling to take advantage of state funding. Instead, many are supported by their parents or work part-time. According to the experts, this shows an urgent need for reform.
According to a study, around five out of six students across Germany do not make use of BAföG, state loans or scholarships. Instead, financial support from parents and part-time jobs are the most important sources of student financing, according to an analysis by the CHE Center for Higher Education Development. "The fact that at least 84 percent of students in Germany are now unable or unwilling to make use of the state support available to finance their studies shows the urgent need for reform," emphasized study author Ulrich Müller in Gütersloh.
For most of the almost three million students currently studying in Germany, the state offers are hardly of any significance and there is an urgent need for action. "If we leave the system of student financing in Germany as it is at the moment, success at university will increasingly depend on whether you have rich parents or are enrolled on a flexible degree course that is compatible with a part-time job," criticized Müller. "Neither of these has much to do with equitable participation in higher education." Across Germany, the survey assumes that nine out of ten students are financially supported by their parents. More than two thirds work alongside their studies.
Interest burden for student loans significantly increased
Delays in the reform of BAföG and high interest rates on the repayment of KfW student loans meant that students were increasingly left to their own devices to finance their studies. The data for 2022 also showed significant differences between the federal states, which were surveyed separately for the first time. Müller demanded in a press release that a future-proof system would require a bundled federal study grant that would end the "confusing variety" of instruments, be adapted to the current reality of students' lives and create financial security.
For the winter semester 2022/23, the BAföG rate was raised from 427 to 452 euros per month - as a basic requirement - which many had criticized as insufficient in light of inflation. According to the Federal Ministry of Education, BAföG funding is to be increased by 150 million euros in 2024. In the coalition agreement, the coalition government had agreed on structural reforms to make BAföG less dependent on parental income and to expand the group of recipients through higher allowances. A student loan from the state development bank KfW is paid out for a maximum of 14 semesters and must be repaid within 25 years. According to the latest KfW figures, the interest burden for borrowers has increased significantly.
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- Given the high interest rates and delays in BAföG reform, many students are turning to personal loans to finance their education, which could lead to a significant increase in their debt burden in the future.
- The study on education policy in Germany revealed that an overwhelming majority of students rely on their parents' financial support or part-time jobs, while only a small fraction utilizes state funding such as BAföG or scholarships.
- The urgent need for education policy reform in Germany, as highlighted by the study author Ulrich Müller, includes creating a simplified and affordable financing system for students, which could potentially involve the consolidation of BAföG and other state loans into a single federal study grant.
Source: www.ntv.de
