Social Affairs Unit
©StuRa TU Dresden
Welcome to the Social Affairs Unit!
We advocate for students' interests in social affairs, represent the student body on social policy issues (e.g. BAföG reform and funding for the Studentenwerk), and offer a wide range of support and advising services. In addition, designated members of the Social Affairs Unit review hardship cases.
You can reach us by email at rf.soziales@stura.tu-dresden.de.
Members
Unit leader: Aljoscha Bär
- Claudia M.
- Daniela B.
- Alina H.
- Mathias F.
Tasks
The Social Affairs Unit deals with students’ financial hardship during their studies as well as other social issues affecting students at TU Dresden. Our responsibilities include in particular:
- Providing advice and support for students experiencing financial hardship (e.g. BAföG issues and student funding)
- Informing students about social benefits such as housing benefit, social assistance, discounts, and other available support, in cooperation with the employed social counselling service
- Monitoring and assessing relevant social policy concepts and developments, particularly reforms to BAföG
- Processing and evaluating applications for financial hardship assistance in accordance with the Hardship Regulations
- Liaising with the various departments of the Studentenwerk to resolve student-related concerns
This work involves close cooperation with, among others:
- Studentenwerk Dresden
- Deutsches Studierendenwerk (DSW)
- Advisory services provided by other institutions (e.g. TU Dresden and the City of Dresden)
- Regional and national student representative bodies
Support and Advising Services
The Social Affairs Unit currently offers advise sessions almost every weekday. We provide guidance on BAföG as well as other ways to finance your studies (scholarships, part-time jobs, working student positions, child benefit, maintenance payments, housing benefit, and more). We also offer general social counselling through our full-time social worker.
You can find more information on our BAföG and Student Funding Advising page.
Projects and Getting Involved
The Social Affairs Unit is involved in a wide range of projects. We provide advice, give talks, and organize information events. But often we also see problems that need to be addressed—and then we take action. A simple open letter to members of the German Bundestag can turn into a meeting with a MdB, and a campaign calling for better funding for the student services organisations can grow into a demonstration with hundreds of participants.
The image below shows the result of the jointly organised “Save Our StuWe” campaign in 2025. The campaign’s main goal was to secure adequate funding for Saxony’s student services organisations (Studierendenwerke). And the best part: thanks to our campaign, an additional €10 million was secured for the Studierendenwerke in the Saxon state budget. As a result, your semester fee increased much less than originally expected.
Interested in getting involved? Whether you want to help organise a nationwide campaign or just support our advicing services, you’re always welcome to join us! Just send us an email at rf.soziales@stura.tu-dresden.de.
Photo: Max Trotte / CC BY-SA 4.0