New Kassel Scholarship Supports Students in Challenging Life Situations

During the initial funding period, five students from the University of Kassel with refugee or migration backgrounds will receive the scholarship, amounting to 200 euros per month. The program aims to provide them with financial relief so that they can focus on their studies. Additionally, the Kassel Scholarship will facilitate connections with the regional business community, enabling them to network and access additional educational opportunities. The Kassel Scholarship has a one-year duration, and recipients can reapply for continued support.

The Wintershall Dea Foundation for Democracy and Diversity made the swift and uncomplicated implementation of the new Kassel Scholarship possible. Their commitment of 36,000 euros secures the three-year starting phase and assists the Student Services of Kassel in the program's realization.

The Kassel Scholarship is inspired by the Hamburg Scholarship program offered by the local Student Services. Consequently, the universities in Kassel and Hamburg are now the only higher education institutions in Germany providing a specific scholarship program for students with refugee and migration backgrounds. Wintershall Dea is involved in the program in Hamburg and, therefore, facilitated the connection between the two student services.
Michael Sasse, a board member of the Wintershall Dea Foundation, firmly believes that supporting students with refugee and migration backgrounds is not only a social necessity for equal opportunities but also highly beneficial for local companies. "The recipients have already demonstrated through their extraordinary life paths that they can handle difficult situations and work diligently towards their goals. They possess commitment, intercultural competence, and multilingualism – all of which are highly valuable skills for German businesses, especially in times of skilled labor shortages," says Sasse. Both sides, the business community and students in Hamburg and now Kassel, stand to benefit greatly from getting to know each other and collaborating within the framework of this scholarship program.

"We are delighted to have the Wintershall Dea Foundation for Democracy and Diversity by our side," says Julia Thonfeld, Deputy Managing Director of the Student Services of Kassel. "At the same time, we hope to expand the program in the future with the support of other companies in the region."

In 2022, the corporate foundation of Wintershall Dea already participated in a joint aid program with the General Students' Committee (AStA) and the Student Services of Kassel. This program supported students from various countries who fled from Ukraine to Northern Hesse after the onset of the Russian invasion in Ukraine and continued their studies there. "As was the case back then, the Kassel Scholarship aims to support bright minds who have ended up in extremely difficult life situations through no fault of their own," says Julia Thonfeld. "With the scholarship, we can make it easier for them to achieve their academic goals."

For more information about the Kassel Scholarship, visit www.studierendenwerk-kassel.de/geld/kassel-stipendium.

Contact

Julia Thonfeld
Abteilungsleiterin Beratung & Studienfinanzierung,
stellvertretende Geschäftsführerin des Studierendenwerks Kassel
0561 804 2567
j.thonfeld[at]studierendenwerk.uni-kassel[dot]de