Be open to new experiences and cultural differences. Respect the diversity of the people you will meet. (Ulrich)
Try to learn German to fit in better with the local community and communicate with other students. (Ulrich)
Studying is better together. Exchange ideas, explain difficult topics to each other. If there are organisational difficulties, work together. (Pål)
Get involved on a voluntary basis. Be it with the AStA, the LEI or through the Tandem language project. This way you can get in touch with people directly and, ideally, find like-minded people. (Veronika)
Talk to people who have been in Bremerhaven for a while. (Alexander)
Use your contacts, including people you met when looking for a flat share. (Alexander)
Talk to your fellow students, mistakes that someone has already made don't have to be made again. (Alexander)
You are not alone. Dare to ask! Higher degree programmes in particular can help you a lot when starting out. (Laura)
To build up connections or simply to know what's going on where, what offers there are, etc., join as many Whats App groups at the university as possible or join the Whatsapp community with the groups. (Studi-Talk)
We welcome all new students to the "Hochschule am Meer".
Dear first-year students! On Monday, 5 October 2026, we look forward to welcoming you to our campus. You’ll meet our Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Alexis Papathanassis, find out about our advisory services, the AStA and our student societies, receive your freshers’ pack and go on an introductory tour of the campus. Over the following days, you’ll get to know your lecturers, fellow students, classrooms, laboratories and your study programme. You will find the detailed programme for the welcome event and for your study programme below this text.
To help you find your way around quickly, we recommend using the interactive campus map.
The programme on 5 October
10:30 am: welcome ceremony
We meet you at Stadttheater Bremerhaven (Bremerhaven City Theatre)12-2:30 pm: Get your first-year student bag!
In Building L12-3:30 pm: Get to know important support services
In Building T2:30 and 3 pm: Tour around the campus
Starting at the roundabout next to the canteen3:30 pm: Let's toast! Drinks and music on campus
In front of or inside the canteen (weather permitting)
An overview of all events on 5 October
The degree programmes of faculty 1 during orientation week
The degree programmes of faculty 2 during orientation week
Getting started: The best tips from our students
Take part in cultural events and activities to learn more about the culture of your fellow students. (Ulrich)
Go to the events organised by the AStA. There are always lots of open-minded people there who are usually keen to get to know others themselves. (Veronika)
Take part in excursions organised by professors or teachers. (Alexander)
Take advantage of the support offered by the university, such as mentoring programmes or language courses, in order to integrate better and study successfully. (Ulrich)
Take part in buddy programmes and exchange programmes to get to know new cultures and network internationally. (Ulrich)
Be punctual for lectures, seminars and other appointments, as punctuality is very important in Germany (Ulrich)
Register for the Studium Generale courses exactly at the minute when Elli opens the doors. (Studi-Talk)
Lectures are not compulsory, I can only recommend that you attend as many as possible. (Michèle)
Labs are compulsory and almost always have to be passed. (Michèle)
Language centre: Spanish, French and Italian can be taken free of charge here at the university and usually give you 4 CP (you have to take an elective subject later, which gives you 5 CP, but you can also do more) (Michèle)
Use the tutorials offered. (Michèle)
Do important things in good time to avoid stress. As soon as you are given a deadline, make a plan of when you will do what. That way you can avoid being overwhelmed. (Pål)
When it comes to studying: create a pleasant working atmosphere in which you enjoy working. Get yourself something to drink, maybe put on some music. Separate your bed from your workstation. Allow yourself enough breaks. Start with something first. Then you can always say that you can't or don't want to do anything today and put your work to one side again. But: start doing something! That helps a lot with procrastination. (Laura)
Make it as easy as possible for yourself to get to work. Open your laptop the day before and lay out your writing materials etc. so that all you have to do is sit down and get started. This reduces the inhibition to start something enormously (can also be used for other things) - as I said, you can always stop if you can't do it. That's totally okay too! (Laura)
Use the self-study rooms in the houses (for group and individual work) (Studi-Talk)
Acquire a method of how best to study with a laptop or tablet. (Studi-Talk)
Use the tutorials offered. (Michèle)
Check your university emails regularly. Important information such as exam registrations are shared there. (Studi-Talk)
If you receive BAföG, remember that proof of 90 CP is required after the 4th semester (Michèle)
The Stuca (Students cafeteria, House K) is proven to have the best coffee (Michèle)
There is a canteen app (Mensaplan Bremen) where you can see the menu of the canteen and cafeteria for the whole week. (Studi-Talk)
To avoid a seagull attack, don't eat snacks in the city centre. (Studi-Talk)
Call it a day. Consciously switching off helps you to continue working efficiently the next day instead of brooding and exhausting yourself. Equalising through sport or other hobbies is just as important. (Pål)
I was told at the beginning: Stick it out for the first 2 semesters, then it will get better. You will have difficulties when you start because you suddenly have a lot of personal responsibility - but it's all manageable. Believe me, I got through it too. (Laura)
Don't be too hard on yourself! Try not to compare yourself with others. Your path is just as right as those of others. No one will look at your report later and ask you why you got a lower grade or why it took you so long. What counts in the end: You've done your degree. (Laura)
In the end, you will have taken so much with you, regardless of what you learnt during your studies: Self-organisation, setting priorities, teamwork etc.. Studying contributes to your personal development. (Laura)
Find a balance between ambition and serenity and look to the right and left of your studies. (Alexander)
It could happen that the degree programme you start is not right for you. There's no shame in dropping out - then you've taken a step in a direction where you know what you don't want. You can then still look for another degree programme or reorient yourself. (Laura) (In such cases, the Student Advisory Service will help you on how to proceed)
Tips, tutorials, interactive campus map and lots of assistance for your start
The orientation page (texts in German) is especially intended for our first-year students. This page will guide you through your entire studies. Here you will also find our interactive campus map, which you can use to navigate to the different buildings on the go.