As of: March 6, 2024, 6:27 p.m
By: Kilian Beck
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The traffic light government is reforming BAföG.
The central focus is on helping the socially disadvantaged to start their studies.
Otherwise little changes.
There is criticism about this.
Berlin – Investments in education were one of the consensus topics of the traffic light coalition at the beginning.
On Wednesday (March 6th), the Federal Cabinet decided on the second reform of the BAföG in the current term of office, with which students from socially disadvantaged families are intended to finance their studies.
Central change: Starting in the fall, first-year students from poorer families will receive 1,000 euros in starting money from the state to purchase a laptop, textbooks or to finance the move to the place of study.
“Studying should not depend on the parents’ wallet,” said Federal Education Minister Bettina Stark-Watzinger (FDP) after the decision in Berlin.
Nothing changes in the standard rates.
Bettina Stark-Watzinger speaks at a press conference.
© Bernd von Jutrczenka/dpa
“BAföG is no longer enough to live on” – Matthias Anbuhl from the German Student Union
And that is exactly what is causing widespread criticism with the tenor: too little and too late.
“In principle, BAföG is no longer enough to live on,” said Matthias Anbuhl, chairman of the German Student Union, to
NDR.
BAföG consists of a so-called basic need and a flat-rate housing allowance for students who no longer live with their parents.
The last time it was increased was by 5.5 percent in the winter semester of 2022.
Since then, the basic requirement has been 452 euros and the flat-rate accommodation allowance is 360 euros; there are surcharges for self-insured students.
This results in a possible maximum rate of 931 euros, which is significantly lower than the citizen's allowance.
MPs from the SPD and the Greens also want to make improvements here in the Bundestag.
Currently planned changes to BAföG funding
One-off study start aid of 1000 euros for social assistance recipients
Digital application from winter semester
Increase in allowances
Introduction of a “flexibility semester”
Easier to change course of study
Increase in repayment rates from 130 to 150 euros per month
Anbuhl did not want to accept that the “poorest of the students” would be given a “zero round” because of the budget situation and referred to the federal budget approved in February.
There, 150 million euros were earmarked for a reform of BAföG.
According to Anbuhl, the minister only wants to invest 62 million with her “small reform”.
That means that Stark-Watzinger is throwing more than 80 million euros “into the wind”.
When asked, a ministry spokeswoman explained this by saying that the reform will only take effect from the coming winter semester and therefore less money will have to be spent on BAföG in the 2024 financial year than in the coming years.
The Joint Association is specifically calling for the Bafög rates to be increased to 800 euros plus a housing surcharge.
“The current benefits, which are even below Hartz IV or citizen’s benefit, are completely inadequate,” criticized Managing Director Ulrich Schneider.
Student representatives: study start-up assistance “overdue”, reform as a whole “not a big deal”
When asked about federal education policy, student representatives now usually react resignedly.
Germany has to ask itself “what its future university graduates are worth,” said An Tang, co-spokesman for the Baden-Württemberg state student representation, in an interview with
kreiszeitung.de
from
IPPEN.MEDIA
.
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Although he welcomes the reform, it is “not a big success”.
The study start-up aid was “overdue”.
The nationwide free association of student bodies (fzs) criticized the federal government's project more sharply.
Board member, Niklas Röpke, spoke on
ZDF
of a “show project”.
He criticized that the planned study start-up aid was “not enough to even begin to cover the costs at the start of your studies”.
“Be it the deposit for the apartment or the first piece of furniture or even the books that you need at the beginning of your studies.”
There was already a protest camp on the grounds of the TU Munich in June (photo).
Now students are protesting at the Pinakothek der Moderne.
© AK Wohnen
Thomas Jarzombek (CDU), education policy spokesman for the Union parliamentary group, said that the “joy” about the one-off 1,000 euros would remain “limited” because the monthly requirement rates paid out are not increasing.
This creates a “gap between citizens’ money and BAföG”.
Citizens' money was increased by a good 12 percent at the beginning of 2024.
There was no change in the requirement rates for BAföG.
He also criticized the fact that the flat rate housing allowance was not adjusted to the increased costs.
This brings many students into “existential problems”.
Housing costs in particular are often “beyond good and bad” for students, said student representative Tang. Therefore, for him, a “first approach” would be to link the flat rate for housing costs to the rental prices at the place of study.
Studying in Munich: Only half your income for rent is “lucky” for BAföG recipients
“I was really lucky,” said a Munich computer science student to IPPEN.MEDIA
, referring to her rent
.
Before the first BAföG reform, she had to pay a good three quarters of her income for rent.
Now it's only about half because of a move and the increase, said the student, who didn't want her name published.
According to the German Institute for Economic Research,
on average nationwide, households spent
around a third of their income on housing in 2022.
During the phase of rising inflation, the student got into the habit of “doing without”.
The increase in prices became noticeable in the “smallest things”, so she changed her diet to the healthiest and cheapest food possible.
An increase in 2022 brought a lot, but she still needs parental support, which brings her total to around the maximum rate of 934 euros.
In the meantime, her BAföG was almost enough for the shared room in Munich, which cost a good 600 euros, but she now lives far away from campus and is cheaper.
Stark-Watzinger promises digitalized application process – CDU man wants to “clear out” the application system
Stark-Watzinger promised an unbureaucratic, “slim, digitally anchored process” at the Bafög offices for the payment of the study start aid.
In general, she explained her intention to simplify the application process through flat rates.
In an interview with our editorial team, Jarzombek demanded that the BAföG application process should be “cleared out” so that it could be paid out more easily and, above all, more quickly.
From his point of view, “completely absurd evidence”, for example about any assets owned by the parents, would currently have to be presented.
This is one of the reasons why it often takes months for an initial application to be processed.
The Munich computer science student said that even without having to present such documents, an application to the BAföG office sometimes takes months.
Jarzombek would simply replace this paperwork with a copy of the parent's tax return, random checks and "appropriate penalties" for fraud.
When it comes to paperwork, Jarzombek criticized the lack of digitalization and called for the existing platform through which students could apply for and receive their energy cost subsidy to be expanded into a “fully digitalized” application system.
Student representative Tang remained skeptical as to whether digitizing applications would really solve all of the system's bureaucratic problems.
It would make more sense to have fewer hurdles when applying for BAföG.
This would relieve the burden on the offices, which are sometimes overwhelmed, and give students more security.
(kb with dpa and afp)