Student assistant jobs (Hiwi): check a current application at FU Berlin

Hiwi job finder

Reading time about 8 min · last updated: 15 August 2026 · More tips for studying and academic work

In Germany, a "Hiwi" is a student assistant, officially a student research assistant (studentische Hilfskraft). Using the notes published by Freie Universität Berlin (FU Berlin), this guide shows how the application for such a post works.

What finding a Hiwi job at FU Berlin is about

Finding a Hiwi job: this section is limited to information on applying for a student assistant post at Freie Universität Berlin. It covers the steps of that application process. The formal requirement for working as a student assistant is enrolment (Immatrikulation) at a German university. The link to your studies therefore comes from the enrolment that is expressly named. A wider link to academic work is not known.

If you want to explain how a Hiwi job relates to academic work, look at the specific job advert first. Only use details that actually appear there. A general statement about academic duties cannot be derived from the application notes.

This guide helps students check an advertised post and align their application with what the advert says. Because posts have to be advertised, check whether you have a specific advert in front of you and read the selection criteria it names.

A short example: an enrolled student finds an advertised post and wants to apply. First they compare their own details with the criteria in the advert. Then they check which address the documents must be sent to within the application deadline named there. The example needs no more steps than that.

If the page you are looking at means a different form of employment (such as a working student job), check the term used in the advert again.

Key starting points before you apply

Before applying, check only the requirements that are expressly named. The first is enrolment at a German university. It is the formal requirement for working as a student assistant.

Check whether you are enrolled at a German university.
Find out whether a specific post is advertised.
Read the selection criteria in the advert in full.
Check the application deadline named in the advert.
Find out which application documents are required.
Find the address for the application given in the documents.
Check whether a social hardship case should or can be stated, if this is relevant to your application.

You will find adverts in the FU Berlin job board and in notices at your department (Fachbereich). Current adverts are listed in the job board at https://www.fu-berlin.de/sites/career/praktika/Stellenangebote/Stellenanzeiger-Freie-Universitaet-Berlin/index.html. Open it, search for a post as a student assistant, and then check the advert, application deadline, documents and application address for FU Berlin. If you want to find a Hiwi job through another department, check its notices or official information. Do not assume a responsibility that is not expressly named.

Existing employment also has to be taken into account when you apply. A further application is permitted even if you already have a job. At the same time, a total monthly employment time of 80 hours applies and must not be exceeded overall. If several jobs add up, check the total number of hours against the relevant documents.

Applying for several posts is expressly permitted. Whether a specific advert contains additional rules for parallel applications cannot be said from this, however. Check this in the advert itself or with the office named there.

The process from search to decision

You can break the process into individual steps. Each step ends with a concrete interim result. This shows you which details are already confirmed and which you still need to find in the official sources.

Clarify definition and intent: Treat "finding a Hiwi job" here as a search for a position as a student assistant at Freie Universität Berlin. Interim result: the type of work under review is defined. If the advert uses a different wording, compare the difference with its exact text.
Check your enrolment: Compare your status with the expressly named requirement of being enrolled at a German university. Interim result: the formal requirement has been checked against your documents or marked as open.
Search for adverts: Read the FU Berlin job board and the notices at your department, because that is where adverts appear. Interim result: either you have a specific advert, or you keep searching there.
Record the features of the post: Note the selection criteria, the application deadline, the required documents and the address given. Interim result: the requirements of the specific advert are recorded in your own checklist.
Align your application: Adapt your documents to the criteria in the advert and send them to the address given within the application deadline named there. Interim result: the application meets the requirements you have checked, or still has open points.
Check the hardship case: If you want to state a social hardship case, check the details in the advert and the official documents. Social hardship cases can be stated in the application and can be decisive for the appointment where qualifications are equal. Interim result: the statement is either included or marked as not to be added, based on the documents.
Compare multiple applications and existing jobs: If you apply for several posts or already have a job, check that the total monthly employment time does not exceed 80 hours. Interim result: your own overview has been compared with this figure.
Document the outcome of the application: After the application deadline, keep the written notice about the outcome of your application. If you are shortlisted, check any invitation to an interview. If you are successful, check the appointment notice from the personnel office and the employment contract that follows. Interim result: the document received, or still missing, is recorded.

The example can be applied like this: the enrolled student finds an advert, notes criteria, documents, address and application deadline, and then compares an existing job with the stated number of hours. Afterwards they check the written reply and, if the application succeeds, the appointment notice and the employment contract.

What you should not add

The notes describe one specific application process and not a complete general explanation of all Hiwi jobs. In 2011 the Berlin Higher Education Act was revised and a two-semester rule was dropped. However, these details belong to the context described. You must not extend them to every university or every student assistant.

Also do not derive anything from them about specific duties, research areas, pay, working hours or expectations of academic writing. If you need these details for a particular post, look directly at the advert or the official documents. Only state them once they are expressly given there.

State an application deadline only if the specific advert gives one. The documents have to be sent to the relevant address within the application deadline; no general deadline is named. So do not add any further time information.

Do not invent legal consequences either. What is certain: enrolment is the formal requirement, applying for several posts is permitted, and the total monthly employment time must not exceed 80 hours. Further rights, duties or consequences cannot be derived from this.

On responsibilities: the personnel office is named in connection with the appointment notice and the employment contract. For other questions, find the responsible office in the official documents. Do not assume that one particular office is responsible for every application.

Final check before you apply

Before you decide, the explanation should be checked in four areas: definition, key features, application and delimitation.

Definition: Is it clear that "finding a Hiwi job" is treated here as a search for work as a student assistant? Have you also avoided deriving a wider definition from it?
Key features: Have you considered enrolment at a German university, the advert, the selection criteria, the application documents, the application deadline and the address given? Have you treated the total monthly employment time of 80 hours as an upper limit?
Application: Can you follow the steps from the search through the application to the written reply? Was the social hardship case treated only as a detail that is expressly named? For a successful application, have you considered the appointment notice from the personnel office and the employment contract that follows?
Delimitation: Have you avoided adding details on duties, academic work, deadlines, legal consequences, dates or general university rules? Is there a concrete next step for every unresolved responsibility?

Then check your documents again. Compare the advert with the required application documents, the address given and the application deadline. If you have several or existing jobs, check the total number of hours against the official information. Find open responsibilities in the official documents.

Finally, keep the written reply received after the application deadline and read it carefully. If your application succeeds, the appointment notice from the personnel office and the employment contract follow. If a document or a detail is missing, do not assume anything: find out from the responsible official office.

Next steps

Sources and status

Source: www.fu-berlin.de (checked on 15 August 2026)