Registration for the entrance examination is only possible online via our application portal. The application function is activated there during the application periods.

Please create only one applicant account!

Would you like to apply for several degree programs? In that case, you must submit a separate application for each degree program (several applications within your account are possible).

After the application deadline has passed, your application will be reviewed. If any documents are missing or need to be submitted later, you will receive a notification in your applicant account.

For degree programs that include a video pre-selection, the video must be submitted together with the application documents in the online application portal in the form of a link (YouTube, Vimeo, or similar). If you successfully pass the video pre-selection, you will receive an invitation to the in-person examination.

For some degree programs, different files are an integral part of the entrance examination (Instrumental and Vocal Pedagogy, Composition, Music Theory, Musicology, Performance, Supplementary Studies in Subject Didactics). In these cases, after successfully passing the first stage of the entrance examination you will receive an invitation to the in-person examination.

For degree programs without a video pre-selection, you will receive an invitation to the in-person examination after your application has been successfully reviewed.

The requirements for the video pre-selection and the in-person examinations, as well as the relevant contact persons for each degree program, can be found on our website under “Entrance Examination” on the page of the degree program you have chosen.

You will receive your invitation to the entrance examination, including all relevant information, by email in good time. We kindly ask for your patience.

• for the summer semester 2027: October 5th to November 9th, 2026
• for the winter semester 2027/28: March 1st to April 2nd, 2027
• for the summer semester 2028: October 1st to November 3rd, 2027

• Bachelor Visual Theatre and Puppetry
• Bachelor Speech Arts
• Bachelor Elementary Music Pedagogy
• Bachelor Jazz & Pop
• Master Jazz
• Master Jazz Composition
• Master Spoken Media
• Master Rhetorical Communication
• Master Speech Art
• Master Instrumental and Vocal Pedagogy
• Master Theory and Practice of Experimental Performance
• Master New Music Ensemble Conducting
• Con­ti­nuing Education Master's program (Wind Orchestra Conducting, Instrumental and Vocal Pedagogy)
• Supplementary study in Elementary Music Education (EMP)/Rhythm

• Acting

Please upload the following documents to the applicant portal as requested:

• Curriculum vitae (CV) in tabular format, including your address, email address, date of birth, school-leaving qualification, previous university studies/training (if applicable), and artistic activities
   
• Proof of payment of €50 per application (processing fee)
  Recipient: LOK BA-Wü
  IBAN: DE 02 6005 0101 7495 5301 02
  BIC CODE: SOLADEST600
  Payment reference: 8587200001142 – NAME, FIRST NAME – APPLICATION NUMBER
  Please make sure to enter the complete payment reference exactly as specified.
  The €50 processing fee must be paid within the application deadline. Otherwise, your application will not be considered. The fee can only be refunded if the university cancels the admission examination; it cannot be refunded if you cancel or withdraw from the examination. The fee is valid only for the current application period.
   
• Copy of your higher education entrance qualification (usually your Abitur certificate or equivalent). If your final certificate is not yet available, please submit your most recent (semester) school report instead.
  If you do not have proof of the general higher education entrance qualification, we require a declaration from you confirming that you will participate in our aptitude/talent examination (see § 58, paragraph 7 LHG).
   
• Applicants for the degree program Puppetry (Figurentheater) must submit a medical certificate confirming that they meet the physical requirements for working professionally as a puppeteer.
  (A phoniatric examination/certificate is not required.)
   
• Applicants for the degree program Speech Education / Speech Arts (Sprecherziehung/Sprechkunst) must submit an ENT specialist medical certificate confirming that there are no voice or speech disorders.
   
• Applicants under the age of 18 must submit a declaration of consent signed by their legal guardians.
   
• Applicants who have already studied at another university must upload a current Transcript of Records.
   
• A German language certificate at level B2 (B2.1 and B2.2) is mandatory for all Bachelor's and Master's degree programs for enrollment (at the latest by the end of the first semester).
   
• APS certificate, if required for applicants from China and India.

Please refer to the information on the admission examination for your chosen degree program on the university website for any specific requirements (e.g. first-round video link, written assignments, etc.).

We charge a processing fee of € 50 per application.

Please transfer the fee to the following account:

Recipient: LOK BA-Wü
IBAN: DE02 6005 0101 7495 5301 02
BIC-CODE: SOLADEST600
Reference: 8587200001142 - Name, First Name - Application Number (Antragsnummer)

Please provide the purpose/reference in full. The 13-digit number is mandatory for correct allocation to our university!

If the processing fee of €50 is not received on our account in a timely manner, the application for the specified semester cannot be considered.

We can only refund this fee if the entrance examination is cancelled by the university but not if you cancel your participation on the exam. The fee cannot be transferred to the next application phase.

Here you can find further information on the semester fee and additional tuition fees.

Having an High School Diploma is not mandatory. Since you cannot provide proof of the general higher education entrance qualification (Abitur), you will have to participate in the aptitude test (exam assessing the sufficient general education for studies).

This is a written exam that lasts approximately 2 ½ hours.

1. Written Examination:

In the exam, you will be given a text or text excerpts that you should work on according to given tasks (processing time: 150 min.).

2. Colloquium:

In an open conversation, we will revisit your exam. We will also discuss topics related to your study field, inquire about your study motivation, and gain an impression of your general education (duration: about 30 min with several participants in the group).

To prepare for the oral and written exams, we recommend reading the following publications, available in all major libraries and partly on the internet:

• a German-language daily newspaper
• the current issue of nmz (New Music Newspaper)
• the current issue of the magazine Üben und Musizieren or the magazine Das Orchester or Opernwelt (especially for vocal students) or an issue of Theater heute (for speech trainers, puppet theater, and acting)
• a composer biography of your choice (including jazz) or a biography of a performer/director you choose, who should play the instrument or belong to the role category you wish to study (corresponding for speech trainers and puppet theater).

With the submission of the following higher education admission certificates, the participation in the aptitude test can be reconsidered:

• Gaokao (China)
• YKS - Yüksekögretim Kurumlari Sinavi: TYT and AYT (Turkey)
• College Scholastic Ability Test (Korea)
• General Scholastic Ability Test (Taiwan)

• Foreign applicants for a bachelor's and master's degree program require a German B2 certificate (B2.1 AND B2.2)
• Foreign applicants for the Master's program in Music Pedagogical Research require a German C2 certificate

Please note that presenting the German B2 / C2 certificate is a requirement for your further studies by the end of the 1st semester. Failure to provide a B2 / C2 certificate will result in deregistration.

Prior to applying, you should already be at level B1. This way, you can attend a B2.1 intensive course online during the semester break before starting your studies. In your 1st semester, you can then achieve level B2.2 in person alongside your studies.

We recommend using the courses offered by VESPA for this. Here you can find our VESPA language programs.

Here you can assess your current language skills.

Internal applicants must also apply via the student portal. This applies to a subsequent as well as an additional degree program. Please note that here too, a processing fee of €50 per application is applicable. Without the online registration, internal applications cannot be considered.
Exceptions to this are students transitioning from a Bachelor of Education to a Master of Education, for whom a simple written notice to the examination office suffices.

For degree programs with a video pre-selection, you will receive an invitation to the in-person examination after successfully passing the video pre-selection by the examination committee. You will be informed by email in good time as to whether you have passed the first round and have been admitted to the in-person examination, approximately four weeks after the application deadline.

For degree programs without a video pre-selection, you will receive an invitation to the in-person examination after your application has been successfully reviewed. Your application is considered complete and processed once your status in the applicant portal has been changed to “valid”.

Please be patient and refrain from making inquiries by telephone.

We wish you every success in your admission examination!

The APS certificate (Certificate of the Academic Evaluation Centre, Cultural Section of the German Embassy Beijing)

Based on a resolution of the Standing Conference of the Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs of the Länder (KMK) dated 17 March 2006, as amended on 10 December 2015, all applicants from the People’s Republic of China are required to submit additional documentation before registering for the admission examination at HMDK Stuttgart.

This means:

1. You are currently studying in China or have already completed your studies there:

You may apply to HMDK Stuttgart only if you submit an APS certificate.
Please upload this certificate to the applicant portal as required.
Applicants who are already residing in Germany must also provide an APS certificate to HMDK Stuttgart.

2. You have not yet studied in China (Bachelor’s applicants only):

If available, please upload a Certificate of Non-Verifiability (Nichtprüfbarkeitsbescheinigung).
Further information can be found here.

The APS certificate

Indian students wishing to apply for a German student visa must have their academic qualifications evaluated by the Academic Evaluation Center (APS) and obtain an APS certificate before applying for a visa. The application period starts on November 1, 2022.

Here's what you need to do:
If you are studying in India or have completed your studies there:

• You must register online and then submit the printed registration confirmation and other required documents to the Academic Inspection Office at the German Embassy in New Delhi. They will review your documents and may invite you for an interview. If the evaluation result is positive, a certificate will be issued. Please upload this certificate as required in the application portal.
• Applicants already in Germany must also present an APS certificate to the HMDK.