There is no scholarship database in Germany that lets you filter for distance learning or part-time study, so the search is more manual than it should be. The good news is that one funding programme exists for exactly your situation – working full-time and studying alongside it – and it is the one most people never hear about.

Start with the Aufstiegsstipendium

The Aufstiegsstipendium of the SBB (Stiftung Begabtenförderung berufliche Bildung) funds a first degree for people who come into higher education through their job rather than through school. It explicitly covers part-time study alongside work, evening and weekend formats, and Fernstudium.

• Requirements: completed vocational training, at least two years of work experience afterwards, and proof of a special professional achievement – for example a top grade in your final exam, an advancement qualification such as Meister or Fachwirt, a top-three place in a national vocational competition, or a well-argued recommendation from your employer.
• Funding: a flat 3,045 euros per calendar year for part-time study, independent of your income. Full-time study is funded with 992 euros per month plus 80 euros book allowance, and 160 euros per child under 14 on top.
• Worth knowing: school-leaving certificates do not matter, there is no age limit, and you can still apply during your first or second semester. There are two selection rounds a year, and after a positive decision you have a year to start studying.

Requirements and the current deadlines are here: sbb-stipendien.de/aufstiegsstipendium

If you are looking at a Fernkurs rather than a degree

Then the Weiterbildungsstipendium, also run by the SBB, is the relevant one. It funds vocational further training with up to 9,135 euros over a maximum of three years, with a 10 percent own contribution per measure and a 250-euro IT bonus in the first year. Two catches: admission is only possible up to the age of 24, extendable by up to three years for voluntary service, parental leave and similar, and it is closed to anyone who already holds a university degree.

The databases worth your time

• mystipendium.de – matches offers against a profile you register, with the most detailed filtering of the three.
• e-fellows.net – searchable by target group, type of funding, subject and federal state.
• stipendienkompass.de – more an information and advisory service than a database, useful for sanity-checking your own profile before you write applications.
• stipendiumplus.de – the joint site of the 13 Begabtenförderungswerke, funded by the federal research ministry. They state openly that you do not need straight As. Whether they accept part-time or distance students differs from foundation to foundation, so check that before you invest time in an application.

Two more things to ask about rather than search for. First, whether your university takes part in the Deutschlandstipendium – universities select and award it themselves, so it never shows up in a central database. Second, whether your provider runs its own funding or discounts; these are often not called scholarships at all and only turn up in the fee section of the contract.

The honest part

Most classic scholarships assume a full-time student without an income, which is exactly why the Aufstiegsstipendium stands out: its part-time rate is a flat sum and your salary does not disqualify you. But 3,045 euros a year will not carry a 15,000-euro programme on its own. For someone in your position, two unglamorous levers usually move more money than any scholarship. Your employer may cover part of the fees or grant study leave, and fees, books, travel and exam costs for job-related further education are generally deductible from your taxable income. Work both out before you build your plan around an application with a deadline months away.

And the biggest lever of all

It is the price tag you pick in the first place. State universities charge a semester fee instead of tuition, and we list English-taught distance programmes in exactly that bracket – for example Health and Environmental Psychology (B.Sc.) at THWS with 210 ECTS over seven semesters from around 4,200 euros in total and English at B2 level, or Engineering Science (B.Eng.) at the same university, also from around 4,200 euros in total. A choice like that saves you more than most scholarships pay out. Please confirm current fees with the university before you decide, as they are not bound by our database.

You can compare programmes and costs in our coursefinder, keep your shortlist in your bookmarks, and if you would rather talk it through, our advice section is open for follow-up questions.

Do you have completed vocational training and at least two years of work experience since finishing it? That one answer decides whether the Aufstiegsstipendium route is open to you, and I can point you much more precisely from there.