Prospective students

The Master's degree programme in Digital Humanities can always be started in the winter semester. Requirements for a successful application are an undergraduate degree with a predominance of history, culture, language, literature, music, religion, art or humanities subjects. To apply, you must state your own research interests in writing. The application documents must be received by 01 July.

What professional qualification is required?

The professional qualifications required for the M.A. Digital Humanities programme include

1. Expertise and skills in the field of humanities, proven by a first professionally qualifying university degree or equivalent degree with at least six semesters of Standard Period of Study (180 ECTS)

• in a humanities or cultural studies subject, i.e. with humanities competences totalling at least 140 ECTS, and
• an average grade of at least 2.5. If your degree certificate is not yet available at the time of application, you can still apply if you have already completed at least 140 ECTS in your degree programme. This is important: Your transcript must then show a provisional overall grade of at least 2.5.

2. Methodological and problem-solving skills in the field of Digital Humanities, proven by a research outline (see below)
As part of the aptitude assessment procedure, we will check whether you fulfil these professional requirements:

• 1.step: We use your transcript to check whether you can provide evidence of achievements in the humanities totalling 140 ECTS and an average or provisional overall examination grade of 2.5 or better.
• 2.step: We evaluate the research outline and form an application grade consisting of 50% of the grade of the research outline and 50% of the grade of your overall Degree or preliminary examination grade.

The following applies: All applicants with a final or preliminary overall examination grade of 2.5 or better, humanities achievements totalling at least 140 ECTS and an application grade of 2.5 or better will be admitted.

What other qualification requirements do I need to fulfil?
In addition to the required academic qualifications, you need

• English language proficiency at level B2 (CEFR). The language level must be proven by an official language certificate (IELTS, TOEFL, PTE or e.g. the school leaving certificate etc.). If you wrote your final thesis (e.g. bachelor's thesis) in English, this is sufficient proof.
  If you studied in English but did not write your thesis in English, you will still need a language certificate.
  Only if English is your native language do you not need to provide proof. In this case, a copy of your passport is sufficient.
• German language skills at DSH-2 level: If your Bachelor's degree was completed at a non-German-speaking institution and German is not your native language (verifiable by a copy of your passport), you must provide proof of German language skills in the form of the German Language Test for University Entrance Qualification (DSH) with an overall result of at least DSH-2 or equivalent.
• If you have not completed your first degree (e.g. Bachelor's degree) in Germany, in addition to your application to the University of Regensburg you will need a preliminary examination document (VPD) from uni-assist confirming an average grade of at least 2.5.

After the deadline for applications, the examination boards for the Master's degree programme will meet to decide whether you can start the Master's degree programme in Digital Humanities on the basis of the documents you have submitted.

In addition to the examination of the Requirements, success in the Eligibility Test / Aptitude Test is decisive if these are fulfilled. This Eligibility Test / Aptitude Test consists of examining the documents you have submitted. A minimum application grade of 2.50 is proof of aptitude.

This application grade is made up as follows:

• The final grade (or current average grade, see "What documents do I need") of your first, professionally qualifying degree programme at 50%
• The quality of the written statement of your research interest (see "What documents do I need") at 50%

You will be informed of the decision in writing. The Eligibility Test can be repeated once, i.e. you can reapply at the earliest on 1 July of the following year.

In order for you to take part in the Eligibility Test, we need the following documents from you:

• A CV (in German or English)
• The certificate of your first university degree (usually a Bachelor's degree) including an overview of the courses taken and grades OR an official transcript of records. Documents that are not issued in German or English must be translated by a sworn translator and notarised.
• an overview of the course content of the underlying degree programme (module descriptions, course catalogues or Study Plan) (This information is very important for checking your professional qualifications)
• a research outline written in German or English outlining a current research question in the field of Digital Humanities in a minimum of 3,000 characters and a maximum of 4,000 characters (excluding references and spaces); the research outline must refer in particular to current research literature in the field of Digital Humanities that is suitable for demonstrating the topicality and relevance of the research question described (see also "How do I go about outlining the research question?").
• a declaration of independence for the research outline
• proof of English language proficiency of at least level B2 (CEFR). The language level must be proven by an official language certificate or e.g. the Abitur certificate. If the final thesis (e.g. bachelor's thesis) was written in English, this also counts as proof. If the Language of Instruction of the degree programme was English, we still require proof (language certificate or thesis). Only applicants with English as their mother tongue are exempt from providing proof. In this case, a copy of your passport is sufficient.
• Proof of (professional) training or continuing education relevant to the Master's programme (e.g. internships etc.) (voluntary)

• A copy of your passport, if applicable
• Proof of sufficient German language skills in the form of the German Language Test for University Entrance Qual ification (DSH) with an overall result of at least DSH-2 or equivalent (if German is not your native language or you completed your Bachelor's degree at a non-German-speaking institution)
• Preliminary examination documentation (VPD) from uni-assist for all applicants who have completed their first degree outside Germany
• APS certificate (if you have a Bachelor's degree from China, India or Vietnam)

We recommend that you start with your own study experience. Have there been occasions when you felt that a (more) computerised approach would be beneficial? What subject interests you most in your undergraduate subject?

Answering these questions will help you find the thematic area for your research question.

In the next step, you should search for literature on how computer-aided methods are already being used in this area. The ACM Digital Library (external link, opens in a new window) or the DBLP (external link, opens in a new window), for example, can be useful here.

Based on this literature, it is important that you describe the new horizons of knowledge that arise for the research question you are specifying if computer-aided methods are used.

The research question can be formulated in German or English .

Note on the use of AI tools in the preparation of the research outline
Please ensure that you use AI-supported writing and research tools responsibly and transparently when creating your research outline. AI tools can be helpful in brainstorming or structuring, but are not a substitute for your own academic work. The outline should clearly show that you have developed the research question, selected relevant literature and formulated the argumentation yourself.
Purely AI-generated texts without your own discussion of the content are usually easy to identify and do not fulfil the requirements of a scientific application. Therefore, use AI as a support, but not as an automatic text generator. It is crucial that your research outline reflects your own thoughts, your understanding of the topic and your ability to do academic work.

You must apply for the Master's degree programme in Digital Humanities via the campus portal of the University of Regensburg (UR). Once you have created an account, enter your contact details and information about your education and upload the required documents. The application is completely electronic.

Prospective students with a higher education entrance qualification or a first degree (Bachelor's) from outside Germany must apply in advance for a preliminary examination documentation (VPD) from uni-assist.


Please send your complete application documents by 1 July of the year in which you wish to begin your studies in the winter semester at the latest.

International applications:
If you have not completed your Bachelor's degree in Germany, you must apply to uni-assist for a preliminary examination documentation (VPD) in addition to your application to the UR.
Important: The application for the Master's programme is not made via uni-assist, but via the campus portal of the University of Regensburg.
This means that you first apply for the VPD at uni-assist, and then you also apply via the campus portal.
As an external partner, uni-assist checks the international certificates and confirms whether they can be recognised in the application process. You must then upload the VPD certificate to the campus portal as part of your online application.
Our tip: Apply to uni-assist for the VPD as early as possible, as processing can take 4 to 6 weeks.

The proportion of international students on the Master's in Digital Humanities is currently 20% and we welcome further international applications. The main range of courses for the DH Master's programme is offered in German; individual courses are offered in English.

Please note that a German language certificate of at least level B2 is required for the application. After successful application, you must be able to provide proof of language skills in the form of the German Language Test for University Entrance Qualification (DSH) or an equivalent German examination with an overall result of at least DSH-2 when you enrol. The language certificates cannot be acquired parallel to the degree programme.
If the first degree (e.g. Bachelor's degree) was not completed in Germany, in addition to the application to the University of Regensburg, we require a preliminary examination documentation (VPD) from uni-assist, which confirms an average grade of at least 2.5.
Many questions are answered in detail on the International Office website.

If you have not completed your Bachelor's degree in Germany, you must apply to uni-assist for a Preliminary Examination Documentation (VPD) in addition to your application to the UR.
Important: The application for the Master's programme is not made via uni-assist, but via the campus portal of the University of Regensburg.
This means that you first apply for the VPD at uni-assist, and then you also apply via the campus portal.
As an external partner, uni-assist checks the international certificates and confirms whether they can be recognised in the application process. You must then upload the VPD certificate to the campus portal as part of your online application.
Our tip: Apply to uni-assist for the VPD as early as possible, as processing can take 4 to 6 weeks.

If you have any questions about your application, you can contact us at any time at the following e-mail address: digital-humanities.studienberatung​(at)​sprachlit.uni-regensburg.de (opens your email program)