What Does the AStA Student Union Do at German Universities?

What AStA is

AStA stands for Allgemeiner Studierendenausschuss, the general students' committee at German universities. Every Studierendenschaft, the legal student body you automatically join when you enroll, elects its own AStA to run day to day student affairs and represent students to the university administration. You pay into this system through your semester fee whether you get involved in student politics or not.

How students end up on it

Students elect a Studierendenparlament, the student parliament, each year, and that parliament elects the AStA from student political lists and independent candidates. Turnout at these elections runs low at many universities, sometimes under 20 percent, so a small group of engaged students often decides who takes the seats. AStA members split responsibilities across departments such as finance, social affairs, international students, culture, and sport, and most publish their contact structure on the university's AStA website.

Budget advice and social counseling

Most AStA offices run a Sozialberatung, a social counseling service, where students get advice on BAföG applications, health insurance choices, housing contracts, and the rules around part time work for international students. Staff also help students work out options if they fall behind on rent or other payments tied to their studies. This service is free and does not require an appointment at most universities, though larger AStA offices post set office hours online.

Legal aid

Many AStA committees fund a Rechtsberatung, a legal advice session, where a lawyer answers questions on tenancy law, employment contracts, and residence permit matters at a set time each week, usually free or heavily subsidized through the semester fee. Sessions run on a rotation and fill up fast at the start of each semester, so check your own AStA website for the current schedule rather than assuming a slot is open.

The semester ticket

AStA administers the Semesterticket, the public transport pass bundled into your semester fee. Since winter semester 2025/26, many AStA offices moved to the Deutschland-Semesterticket, priced at 60 percent of the standard Deutschlandticket. At JLU Gießen , that works out to €34.80 a month, or €208.80 for the semester, charged automatically when you re-enroll. Exact pricing tracks the local Deutschlandticket agreement, so the amount differs by region, and you should check your own AStA's transport page instead of assuming a fixed number applies everywhere.

AStA negotiates this contract with local transport providers on behalf of students and also handles refund requests for students who already hold a different valid transport pass. AStA FU Berlin's semester ticket page shows a typical example of how the ticket, exemption rules, and refund process get explained to students.

Other services worth knowing

• Cheap or free printing and copying at the AStA office.

• Second hand bookshops and exam archives run by department level student councils, called Fachschaften.

• International student desks that translate German bureaucracy or answer visa adjacent questions.

• Orientation programs, party nights, and cultural events at the start of each semester.

• Childcare grants or subsidized daycare spots at some larger universities.

fzs, the national student body

Above the individual AStA offices sits fzs , the freier zusammenschluss von student*innenschaften, a national association that represents German Studierendenschaften on federal policy questions such as BAföG reform and tuition rules. Membership in fzs is not automatic for every AStA, and not all join, but many use fzs research and position papers when they lobby their own university senate on national issues.

AStA versus Studentenwerk

New students often mix up AStA with Studentenwerk, and the two run entirely separate operations. Studentenwerk is a regional public body that runs dormitories, Mensa canteens, and BAföG processing across several universities in a region, staffed by paid employees. AStA is your own university's elected student committee, staffed mostly by students, and it deals with representation, advocacy, and the smaller scale services listed above. If your question is about a dorm room or a BAföG payment, contact Studentenwerk. If it is about the semester ticket, legal advice, or student politics, contact AStA.

Getting involved yourself

You do not need fluent German or citizenship to run for a seat on the Studierendenparlament or to join an AStA working group as a volunteer. Many universities post election announcements and candidate lists in English alongside German, and international student representatives sit on several AStA committees specifically to raise concerns that affect non-German students, such as visa renewal timing around exam periods or the availability of English language counseling.

How to reach your AStA

Search your university's name plus AStA to find your office, since each university runs its own site with its own layout. Most list office hours, a contact email, and a summary of current services on the homepage. Go to your department's Fachschaft first for course specific questions, and go to AStA for anything covering the whole student body, such as the semester ticket, legal advice, or social counseling.