Global Exchange Program
The Global Exchange Program lets you spend one or two semesters studying at a partner institution of the University of Bonn in the United Kingdom or outside of Europe without having to pay any tuition fees. Students of any subject can apply for this exchange program from the second semester of their bachelor’s degree program onward.
Key facts
- Spend one or two semesters studying at a prestigious partner institution of the University of Bonn in a non-European country
- Have your tuition fees at the partner university waived and, in some cases, receive a financial grant
- Course work and exams completed abroad will largely be recognized in Bonn
- Get support from both the University of Bonn and the host university
Application procedures
Applications for stays in Australia during the calendar year 2027 can be accepted until May 25, 2026, procedures for the Academic Year 2027/28 will open in the fall.
Host countries
Nord America: Canada, US
Africa: Ghana
Asia: China/ Hong Kong, Israel, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan
Latin America: Brazil, Chile, Mexico
Australia
United Kingdom: Scottland
Our search portal for exchange programs (only available in German) contains details of all our current partner universities (subject to change).
Application
The first thing to do is to apply to the International Office at the University of Bonn for a place in the program. If you are accepted by the International Office, you will then need to submit another application, this time directly to your chosen host university.
The International Office is responsible for administering the Global Exchange Program and will help you to apply to the partner university and prepare all the other organizational aspects of your stay.
Application criteria
- Students enrolled at the University of Bonn are eligible from the second program-related semester onward (bachelor’s students and those preparing to take the state examination) or the first program-related semester onward (master’s students)
- Good to very good academic performance
- Compliance with the application requirements set by the chosen host university/ universities
- Language skills that meet the relevant minimum requirements
Requirements set by the host university
Before you apply, please do your own research into the specific application requirements set by your host university/ universities, particularly regarding degree programs, average grades and language certificates.
You can find specific admission requirements, study options and other information provided by the individual partner universities in our search portal for exchange programs (only available in German).
Application deadlines
The application deadlines are arranged by country group and there is one application deadline per academic year for each. You can apply to up to three partner universities in the respective country group by each deadline. If accepted by the partner university, you will begin studying abroad in the spring or fall semester of the next academic year.
Applications for the 2026/27 academic year (or the 2027 calendar year in the case of Australia) can be submitted online, taking into account the following deadlines:
North America, Africa and United Kingdom: November 12, 2025
Asia (except Israel): November 23, 2025
Latin America and Israel: February 15, 2026
Australia: May 25, 2026
Application procedure
There are two stages to the application process for the Global Exchange Program:
First you apply to be nominated for one of up to three partner universities of your choice within a country group. If you are successful, you will then need to submit another application, this time to the host university for which you were nominated in the selection process. The International Office can help you with this.
You can find detailed information and the forms for applying on our application page.
To apply for the Global Exchange Program, you must first check the university-specific requirements of the individual partner institutions, including the availibility of subjects on offer. In practical terms, this means that you
- should use the website of the partner university or universities to ensure that your degree program, or a closely related one, is generally available there, and then
- search the University of Bonn’s search portal to check whether there are any restrictions on this program or whether the department is completely closed to exchange students.
Furthermore, as some fields of study are not widely available, initial guidance regarding the partner university research is provided here (subject to change):
Unfortunately it is not currently possible for law students to study in the US or Canada as part of the Global Exchange Program. For all other countries, you must individually research the partner institutions as described above.
Law students interested in a stay abroad are generally advised to consult with their department first and then contact the International Office for further clarification.
Students of medicine or dentistry that are interested in the Global Exchange Program can currently only apply for a stay at a select few partner institutions (mostly in Latin America and Australia). Please conduct further research as described above.
At many host universities, computer science courses are severely restricted or not available to exchange students at all. You should therefore check very carefully whether there is a sufficient range of courses available to you and what alternatives you might be able to consider if you are unable to gain admission to your preferred choice(s).
At many host universities, psychology courses are severely restricted or not available to exchange students at all. You should therefore check very carefully whether there is a sufficient range of courses available to you and what alternatives you might be able to consider if you are unable to gain admission to your preferred choice(s).
Further information
Engagement as an ambassador for the University of Bonn
The Global Exchange Program is based on a bilateral exchange between students at the University of Bonn and its partner universities, each side waiving tuition fees for the other. To maintain these partnerships, it is therefore important that you promote the idea of being an exchange student at the University of Bonn during your stay abroad through active engagement at your host university. In doing so, you will ensure that your fellow students may continue to study at the partner university in the future.
If you are accepted to the program, the International Office in Bonn will help to prepare you for your ambassadorial role by training you before you leave.
Funding
Funding within the Global Exchange Program includes a waiver of your tuition at the host university as well as a one-off financial grant. The latter can only be awarded if you have not been offered and accepted another scholarship for your stay abroad. The grant is paid out of PROMOS funds. However, you will not need to prepare a separate PROMOS application (unless you are participating in the Washington Seminar Program at American University).
Please note that although the partner universities waive tuition for exchange students, your host institution may still charge small fees in different amounts (e.g. administrative fees, social contributions, laboratory or material costs, etc.). If such fees are known to us in advance, they are usually included in the cost of living in the search portal.
The level of funding available varies from host country to host country and amounts to one installment (partial grant for stay abroad) for the winter semester 2025/26. The installments for the summer semester 2026 will not be announced until late summer of 2025.
To determine the precise amount you will be offered, please refer to the column “Teilstipendium Aufenthalt” in the document provided by the DAAD (only available in German).
To cover more costs that may occur while studying abroad, we strongly advise students to research other funding options ahead of time.
News
Signal drop-in session
Short advice session on the Global Exchange Program via Signal: every Tuesday, 10:00 to 12:00 am
Applications 2026/27
Applications for stays in Australia during the calendar year 2027 can be accepted until 25 May, procedures for the Academic Year 2027/28 will open in the fall.
First-Hand Report
Former exchange students, including participants from the Global Exchange Program, share their experiences and give tips on how to plan as well as carry out a semester abroad. You can find an initial selection on our website, whilst all the testimonials are available via the search portal.
Contact
Laura Cornesse
0.003
Poppelsdorfer Allee 53
53115 Bonn (Germany)
Office hours
Please make an appointment via eCampus
- Tuesdays (on site)
10:00 am - 12:30 pm
- Thursdays (Zoom or phone)
01:30 pm - 04:00 pm