As an EU citizen, you pay EUR 0 tuition. In Baden-Württemberg, the state where Heidelberg is located, non-EU students pay EUR 1,500 per semester, but EU/EEA citizens (including Romanians) are fully exempt since 2012. The only mandatory fee is the Semesterbeitrag of around EUR 150 to EUR 180 per semester (student services, student body, administrative fees), which usually includes the transport pass. In practice, your tuition costs under EUR 360 per year. The real cost is living in Heidelberg, around EUR 850 to EUR 1,100 per month.

Because you are part of the European Union. Since 2012, Germany abolished tuition for students with an EU/EEA access qualification. The state of Baden-Württemberg reintroduced from 2017 a fee of EUR 1,500 per semester only for students from outside the EU/EEA at bachelor's and master's level. EU/EEA citizens, including Romanians, are explicitly exempt from this fee. It is one of the biggest advantages of being an EU citizen: the same education at Heidelberg, but without tuition, while an American, Indian or Chinese student pays EUR 3,000 per year in tuition alone.

Yes, the Romanian Baccalaureate is recognised, but it is generally evaluated through uni-assist, which confirms whether it gives you direct access or whether you need a year of Studienkolleg. Difficulty depends on the programme: many programmes have open admission (you enrol if you meet the requirements), while the competitive ones have Numerus Clausus (NC), where the access grade calculated from your Baccalaureate average decides admission. Medicine is the most competitive (very high NC). For NC programmes, a high Baccalaureate average (9 plus) significantly increases your chances.

Most bachelor's degrees at Heidelberg are taught in German, so you need DSH-2 or TestDaF (TDN 4) at enrolment. However, Heidelberg also offers an ever wider set of programmes in English, especially at master's level (life sciences, physics, economics, public health), where you usually need IELTS 6.5+ or TOEFL iBT 90+. Recommendation for Romanians who want a bachelor's: if you are aiming for German, start your language preparation 1 to 2 years in advance; ISZ Heidelberg offers intensive A1-C1 courses and DSH preparation.

Deutschlandstipendium: EUR 300 per month for students with good results, also open to EU students. DAAD (German Academic Exchange Service): scholarship programmes for international students, including Romanians, for bachelor's, master's and exchanges. Erasmus+: if you come initially on an academic exchange of 1 to 2 semesters, you receive a monthly grant. Internal Heidelberg scholarships and emergency funds. The study-abroad scholarship of the Romanian Ministry of Education for Romanians admitted to a German public university, combinable with German scholarships. Important: the EUR 0 tuition you automatically receive as an EU citizen is already a huge advantage over non-EU students.

Heidelberg is renowned for: Medicine (with Universitätsklinikum Heidelberg, one of the largest university hospitals in Europe), life sciences and biotechnology (the Neuenheimer Feld campus, alongside the DKFZ and EMBL centres), physics and astronomy, chemistry, law (ranked in the world top 50, 3rd in Germany), mathematics, economics, psychology and the humanities (Classics and Theologie ranked number 1 in Germany at subject level). Heidelberg holds University of Excellence status in the German Exzellenzstrategie programme.

No. As a Romanian (EU) citizen you do not need a study visa for Germany. You can move and enrol freely. After arrival, you only need to do Anmeldung (registering your residence address) at the Bürgeramt within the first 14 days, open a German bank account and have health insurance (the European Health Insurance Card or German public insurance). Unlike non-EU students, you do not need a mandatory Sperrkonto with a fixed amount, nor a residence permit for studies.

Yes, as an EU citizen you have the automatic right to work in Germany without a visa or work permit. Germany is the largest economy in Europe, with high demand for graduates in engineering, IT, life sciences, medicine and finance. The Heidelberg-Mannheim region has a strong cluster of biotechnology, pharma and research (BASF, SAP nearby, plus DKFZ and EMBL). During your studies you can work part-time without special restrictions as an EU citizen. After graduation, with a German degree recognised across the EU, you can work anywhere in the Union without a visa.