The Welcome Centre of the University of Passau is the central contact and advice centre for international researchers. Its services include providing assistance with matters relating to visas, residence permits, insurance policies, accommodation search, access to the University’s infrastructure (ZIM account and CampusCard). The Welcome Centre also offers support to academics' families travelling and furthering integration.
With this service portfolio, the Welcome Centre strengthens the internationalisation of the University and supports the hosting chairs and institutions.
Welcome Centre staff additionally serve as contact persons for international guests who join the university within the Erasmus+ personal mobility for further training and education or teaching.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION
The Welcome Centre is financed through earmarked funds provided by the Bavarian State Ministry for Science and the Arts. This means we cannot pay for your travel expenses (tickets, board and lodging) and cannot book tickets for you.
The aim of the ministry is the support of the internationalisation of universities, especially through middle- and long-term guest residences of foreign researchers at Bavarian universities.
In order to facilitate your guest’s arrival and stay, it is essential to consider some formalities. Therefore, we have compiled the most important information in a checklist.
Before your guest arrives in Passau, please contact the Welcome Centre, so that we are aware of their arrival and can help if needed! Please inform your guest to register with our MoveOn system as well.
Passau is about 2.5 hours away from Munich Airport. For travelling between Munich Airport and Passau, your guests can use the so-called “Bayern-Ticket”, which is valid for the bus (635) and trains (RE, S1). The Bayern-Ticket is cheaper if purchased at the ticket machine located in the central area of the airport (Zentralbereich) but can also be booked it in advance on the Deutsche Bahn Homepage, where you can also check the itinerary.
We will gladly help you and your guest find a suitable accommodation during their stay in Passau.
If the faculty researcher room, which is managed by the faculty administrations, is occupied and the hosting institution cannot offer your visiting researcher an office/desk space, please contact the Buildings and Estates Section.
Please understand that it is not always possible to find an available office/desk space in the same building. Eligibility for office/desk spaces can depend on the duration of your visiting researcher’s stay. Buildings and Estates will try to find a desk/office space close-by.
Contact:
Josef Köberl
Room RG3 213
Rudolf-Guby-Str. 3
Phone: +49 851 509 1230
Fax: +49 851 509 1239
Josef.Koeberl@uni-passau.de
The CampusCard is a useful and relevant tool for academics to have access to the University resources. To get a CampusCard, please send us an e-mail. We will send your guest the application form and forward it to the unit responsible.
The CampusCard is a multi-functional chip card used by members of the University of Passau: it is used for paying for food at the refectory and cafeterias, for using the printer-copiers and library services. For students, it also serves as their student ID and gives access to all services at the university.
The CampusCard offers the following functions:
Documents you need to get a CampusCard:
There are two versions of the CampusCard: one for students and one for staff. If your visiting researcher is a doctoral candidate, they have to choose among the two. More information can be found on the help page for the CampusCard and in the Welcome Guide.
Your ZIM account lets you use the University's various computer network systems. Students and staff receive such an account and an associated e-mail address. Doctoral students who are enrolled at the University of Passau receive their account at the time of enrolment. To receive a ZIM account for a new staff member, please contact us.
We will gladly prepare a welcome folder with information about the University and the City of Passau for your visiting staff member.
For visting staff who are here for a short duration, the folder is composed of the image brochure of the University, a city map with tourist information in English (or, if available, in your visiting researcher's native language), a campus map and, if needed, an overview of bus routes. The folder also includes a small present, e.g. a writing PAD and a ballpoint pen.
For visiting staff who stay for a longer duration or permanently, we will prepare a more extensive folder with additional information about the University Library and leisure activities in Passau.
The Welcome Centre offers German classes every semester in cooperation with the Language Centre. These are adapted to the language level of the academics and scheduled around their requirements. To overcome language barriers as fast as possible, the Welcome Centre offers small course sizes to allow for more individualised exercises. The semester course (respectively in the winter and summer semester) consists of ten units with two hours of class each, while the intensive course, which takes place every October during the Orientation Week, comprises five days with four class units each.
Additionally, visiting staff have access to the regular Language Centre courses.
Furthermore, we can also find private courses and the Volkshochschule Passau offers classes as well.
Please feel free to contact us anytime and we will inform you about language learning opportunities.
If you inform us about the stay of your visiting staff early on, we can organise a free campus or city tour with a larger group, which can be offered in English upon request.
Naturally, there are several formalities to take care of before leaving Germany too. To facilitate your visiting staff member's leaving Passau, we have put together a checklist with important deadlines and formalities.
