Newbies Guide - With these tips, you're guaranteed to have no problems in everyday university life!

Starting your first semester:

First, we would like to recommend a few important websites and platforms that you will always need during your studies.

The most important platform is probably “Ilias” or “https://www.ili.fh-aachen.de”. Throughout the semester, professors regularly upload lecture materials, exercises, and tests, which you can view and download at your convenience.

To access these documents, you must first register for the respective modules. This can be done via “https://www.campusoffice.fh-aachen.de”. Once you have logged in to the site, you can select your semester, in your case the first semester. Now select “Bachelor's programs” and then your corresponding program. Under “1st semester,” you can register for all modules. Once you have successfully registered, Ilias should also have transferred your modules.

Now you have successfully registered for everything and are starting your studies highly motivated. After a few weeks of studying, however, you remember that exams are coming up at the end of the semester. Where do you register for them? To do so, simply go to “https://www.qis.fh-aachen.de”, search for “Prüfungsanmeldung” (exam registration) and register for all the exams you want to take. If you realize shortly before the exam that you are not fit enough to take it, you can withdraw from the exam within the deadline. If you have missed the deadline and are unable to take the exam due to a sudden illness or similar circumstances, you must submit a doctor's note by the end of the third working day after the exam date at the latest.

Great! You've almost made it through your first semester. But there are at least five more to go. To re-register for the next semester, simply sign up on “https://h1.fh-aachen.de”. You can find all relevant information under “ My Studies”. At the end of the semester, a circular email will also be sent out containing all the relevant information, so you don't have to worry about missing the re-registration deadline :). If you do miss the re-registration deadline, you must send a letter to the Student Secretariat explaining why you missed the deadline. They will then decide whether you can re-register despite the delay or not. If this is not the case, you will be de-registered. If you want to continue your studies, you will have to re-enroll for the following semester.

Questions and help:

During your studies, you will undoubtedly have other questions that are not directly related to your studies but concern you as a student in general. The AStA offers a range of advisory services to address these issues. If you have any questions about BAföG and student financing, please feel free to contact us at any time. We also offer advice on university matters, examination regulations, and legal issues. Do you feel disadvantaged in your studies due to a physical or mental impairment? Then you can also contact us and arrange a consultation. If you would like to complete your studies as a mother/father and have questions about financial assistance or childcare, we can also help you. For further information, please visit the AStA website!
If you have general questions about re-registration, de-registration, or other organizational issues, please contact the Student Secretariat at “ssc@fh-aachen.de.” If you are interested in spending a semester abroad or are coming from abroad to study at FH Aachen, the International Office (aaa@fh-aachen.de) is your point of contact. There you can obtain information about study opportunities abroad and counseling services for international students at FH Aachen.

Opportunities for involvement in higher education policy:

Commitment and volunteer work can definitely be a plus when applying for jobs later on. At university, you can choose between various university political activities. The best known is the AStA. There you have the opportunity to help students with questions, organize events for university-related topics, or network with AStAs from other federal states.
If you are interested in representing the interests of students and putting them into practice, you can run for the student parliament. It consists of 21 seats and is elected annually by enrolled students at FH Aachen. As the student parliament, you are obliged to elect the AStA executive committee and confirm the AStA representatives.
If you want to start at a lower level, you can also join the student council. There, you will “only” represent the interests of students in your own department, but this still involves a lot of responsibility. The student council answers questions about studying, organizes events, and is responsible for providing office supplies.
These are just three of many ways to get involved during your studies. You also have the opportunity to join the departmental council, the senate, the SHK council, and many other committees. If you are interested, you are welcome to run in the next university election!

University glossary (all abbreviations at a glance):

To help you avoid getting completely lost when you encounter abbreviations, we have prepared a small “university glossary” for you, which contains all the important abbreviations.

AStA = Allgemeiner Studierenden Ausschuss (General Student Committee)
FSR = Fachschaftsrat (student council)
SP = Studierendenparlament (student parliament)
GreKo = Gremienkonferenz (committee conference)
FSK = Fachschaftsrätekonferenz (student council conference)
FBR = Fachbereichsrat (faculty council)
SHK-Rat = Vertretung der Belange der Studentischen Hilfskräfte (Representation the interests of student assistants)