Research in Design, Art and Media — Designing the Future (Master of Arts)

What you would need to do

In the order you must act, not the order things get published. Some steps depend on your nationality — tell us where you are from and this list gets sharper.

1. APS India minimum Class XII score of 70%Before you applyA hard academic floor applied at COUNTRY level, outside any university's own criteria. A student holding a university offer can still be refused the APS certificate, and therefore the visa. Announced 23 February 2026, effective Winter Semester 2026/27.Academic Evaluation Centre India (APS India) ↗
2. dMAT (Digital Master Test) — required for some Master's fieldsBefore you applyStandardised academic aptitude test run by APS India with g.a.s.t. Required as part of APS documentation for Master's applicants whose PREVIOUS degree is in Engineering; Commerce, Accounting, Finance or Economics; or Business and Management. Applies from the s · EUR 150APS India with g.a.s.t. ↗
3. German language proficiency (institution-set level)No national minimum level. The recognised EXAMS are standardised nationally (TestDaF and DSH), but the required level and any waiver are set by each institution.Individual higher education institutions; exams standardised nationally ↗
4. APS certificate (Akademische Prüfstelle) — IndiaVerification of academic documents issued by Indian institutions. Required for the German student visa. It does NOT replace a university's admission decision, and it can run in parallel with university applications.Academic Evaluation Centre India (APS India) ↗
5. Proof of financial resources (Finanzierungsnachweis / Sperrkonto)Applicants must prove funds for one year, commonly by depositing into a blocked account (Sperrkonto). Blocks the visa, not the university application. · EUR 11,904Federal Foreign Office / DAAD Study in Germany ↗
6. Health insurance (compulsory)Proof of health insurance is demanded at BOTH university enrolment and residence-permit application.DAAD Study in Germany ↗
7. Anmeldung (residence registration)Every international student moving to Germany must register at the residents' registration office, usually within one week. The written confirmation is needed to obtain the residence permit.Einwohnermeldeamt / Bürgeramt, then Ausländerbehörde for the permit ↗

Cost

tuition — EUR 3,570 per year (international students)DAAD International Programmes: Research in Design, Art and Media — Designing the Future (Master of Arts) at Merz Akademie, University of Applied Arts, Design and Media Stuttgart — tuition fees as published: '3,570'Checked 2026-08-16 · daad.de

Entry requirements

• languageDAAD programme detail for Research in Design, Art and Media — Designing the Future (Master of Arts) at Merz Akademie, University of Applied Arts, Design and Media Stuttgart — english language requirement as published: B2 required, please provide an official language certificate, e.g.: IELTS Academic: 5.5
• otherDAAD programme detail for Research in Design, Art and Media — Designing the Future (Master of Arts) at Merz Akademie, University of Applied Arts, Design and Media Stuttgart — academic admission requirements as published: Applicants need a Bachelor’s degree or equivalent (e.g. Diplom) with 210 or 180 ECTS credits from an artistic/design, humanities / cultural studies or natural sciences (e.g. computer science) programme. Applicants whose Bachelor’s degree has 180 ECTS credits must complete 30 credits in the form of additional study-relevant coursework as part of a preliminary semester in order to complete the Master’s degree with 300 ECTS credits. In this case, the duration of the study programme is four semesters. A complete application includes: Curriculum vitae Proof of a first university degree (certified copies of certificates including transcript of records) Passport photo Exposé ou