Possibly - depending on the severity of the disability and the closer circumstances - an impairment can be claimed for the application for a NC Degree programme. The following special applications may be considered for the purpose of compensating for existing disadvantages:

• An approved application due to exceptional hardship (in short: hardship application) leads to immediate admission to the studies within a quota, without the average grade and the waiting period still being taken into account.
• An approved application for improvement of the average grade leads to the applicant's participation in the NC procedure with a better average grade.
• An approved application for improvement of the waiting time results in the applicant with a longer waiting time participating in the NC procedure.

This information sheet contains more detailed information on the formal and content requirements for the respective application:

Leafleton special applications in the NC procedure.

Compensation for disadvantages can also be considered with regard to the completion of pre-study internships (deadline extension) and in the context of aptitude testing procedures (e.g. for design and Master's degree programmes). See also "Compensation for disadvantages during examinations" below.

• What are the structural conditions in the respective faculty and the central service facilities (library, language center, examination office, cafeteria, etc.)?
• To what extent are lecture/seminar rooms and laboratories barrier-free?
• Are there integrated or mobile assistance systems for students with hearing or visual impairments?

The building plans of the three university campuses show, for example, exactly where disabled parking spaces, barrier-free entrances, disabled-accessible toilets and elevators are located:

Krefeld South Campus building plan.

Locations of handicapped accessible restrooms

Locations of first aid/breastfeeding and rest rooms

Locations of nappy-changing rooms

Building plan Campus Krefeld West

Locations handicapped accessible toilets

Locations of first aid/breastfeeding and rest rooms

Locations baby changing rooms

Building plan Mönchengladbach campus

Locations handicapped accessible toilets

Locations first aid/breastfeeding and rest rooms

Locations baby changing rooms

In case of severe physical or sensory disabilities, it is advisable to familiarize yourself with the conditions on site before the commencement of studies. We will be happy to organize a site visit or walk-through for you, or to establish contact with those responsible in the faculty.

Questions often arise due to a disability that affect the type of courses offered and personal study plans:

• Are time adjustments possible in the curriculum?
• Is it possible to complete the studies on a part-time basis?
• What about attendance requirements?
• If participation in courses is restricted, can course content be taught in another way or can teaching materials in general (e.g. for the visually impaired) be provided in an adapted form?

Students with a disability or chronic illness have a legal right to compensation for disadvantages if they are unable to take an examination in whole or in part in the intended form due to their impairment. In this case, equivalent examination performance can be provided in another form. All examination regulations of the HN contain a corresponding regulation. It may also apply to examinations within the framework of aptitude testing procedures (e.g. for design or Master's degree programmes).

The Examinations Board is responsible for granting disadvantage compensation. Students who require compensation for disadvantages in examination situations should contact the Examinations Board in good time before the examination - preferably at the beginning of their studies. In a generally informal application, students must name the desired examination modifications and justify their necessity. In addition, they must prove and credibly demonstrate the health impairment and its concrete examination-relevant effects by means of medical certificates. It is not necessary to disclose the diagnosis.

Measures to compensate for disadvantages can be, for example:

• the granting of a writing extension for written examinations
• the extension of the processing time of studies or theses
• splitting examinations into several parts
• the interruption of examinations by individual rest periods
• the replacement of written examinations by oral examinations and vice versa
• the admission and, if necessary, the provision of technical aids, assistance services, adapted examination documents and separate examination rooms.

Important: There is no entitlement to a specific form of disadvantage compensation. And there are general limits: Not all study-relevant effects of a health impairment can be compensated by disadvantage compensation. In principle, students must be able to acquire the competencies required in their Degree programme and to prove this knowledge through examinations. This means that the form and conditions of the acquisition of competencies as well as the examinations can be modified under certain conditions, but the performance objectives themselves must be met. In some cases, this may mean that a modification or substitution of an examination performance is out of the question. This is usually the case if the examination performance is an essential and indispensable part of the studies and definitely cannot be replaced in an equivalent manner.

Disability-related additional needs

We advise and support you when it comes to the assumption of costs for so-called disability-related additional needs in studies, i.e. in particular the application for technical aids, communication and study assistance or mobility aids.

The costs of such equipment are usually covered by the Landschaftsverband Rheinland (LVR) as the provider of supra-local social assistance. When applying, it is often a matter of specifying the need with regard to the requirements of the studies. If necessary, we will provide a written statement or make personal contact with the office handling the application. Further information can be found here:

Info pages of the LVR

Educational support

The BAföG provides for exceptions to certain requirements for students with disabilities or chronic illnesses. This applies, for example, to exceeding the age limit at the commencement of studies, to funding outside the standard time to degree and to repayment modalities. More detailed information can be found here:

Info pages of the German Student Union

Scholarships

Scholarships specifically for students with disabilities or chronic illnesses are few and far between. Nevertheless, you should not disregard the general possibility of applying for a scholarship. For more information, research tips, and a database of scholarship providers, click here:

Funding Opportunities - HN Overview Page.

Scholarship Info Page of the German Student Union

Studying with disabilities and chronic illness in NRW:

Competence Centre Disability, Academic Education, Career (kombabb) e.V.

Further information:

https://www.studentenwerke.de/de/behinderung