Buddy Programme

Mentors are students of the University of Bayreuth who have lived in Bayreuth/Kulmbach for some time. All mentors are volunteers in our Buddy Programme and try to support you as best as possible. Depending on the number of registrations, it is possible that one mentor will supervise several buddies.

Your mentor can help you with your first general questions and give you valuable tips about studying and living in Bayreuth/Kulmbach. If your questions cannot be answered, you can always contact the Welcome Services.

All buddies are international exchange, bachelor, master or PhD students who start their studies at the University of Bayreuth. The matching takes into account different categories and in the best case your buddy is from the country where you are planning/have done a semester abroad or studies the same degree program as you.

You will have the opportunity to share your experiences as a student of the University of Bayreuth, to apply your multilingualism, to make new contacts and to prepare yourself for a (possible) stay abroad. Of course, we cannot estimate the extent to which your buddy will need support, but if you have any questions, you can always contact the Welcome Services.

We would like to point out that the Buddy Program is not a language tandem program! It is primarily intended to help new international students - regardless of nationality and language - settle in at the University of Bayreuth. However, the Language Centre of the University of Bayreuth also offers a language tandem program.

The goal of the Buddy Program is to help your buddy settle into life in Bayreuth/Kulmbach and to introduce him or her to student life. There is no fixed structure.

Below you will find some examples of how you can support your buddy:

• Contact by email before the beginning of the semester
• Support with contacting the landlord to pick up the key
• Pick up at the train station (Bayreuth/Kulmbach) and take to the accommodation
• Contact person for administrative and university questions (e.g. registration at the city hall, enrolment at the university,...)
• Involvement in your own leisure activities
  
• Networking with fellow students
  

Unfortunately, it can sometimes happen that emails end up in the spam folder or are not delivered for other reasons. If you do not receive a response to your first email for several days, please contact buddy@uni-bayreuth.de. We can reach out via another email address and find the problem or in case of doubt assign a new person.

Registration is possible in the summer semester starting in February and in the winter semester starting in August. Up-to-date information is available on our Instagram page.

Matching is scheduled for the summer semester starting in early March and for the winter semester starting in early September. There will be several matching rounds each semester. The last matching takes place shortly after the start of lectures.

In order to participate in the Buddy Programme, you only need to fill out the matching with the title "Buddy Program for International Students" and the respective semester (in the summer semester 2022, for example: "Buddy Program for International Students Summer Semester 2022"). The platform is also used for other programs (Language Tandem and Alumni Job Mentoring) - interested students are welcome to register for these as well. The respective contacts for further information can be found on the matching platform.

Matching takes place based on an allocation of points in the various categories. The required information helps to match buddies and mentors appropriately. This helps ensure a positive Buddy Programme experience for all involved.

Please send an email to buddy@uni-bayreuth.de.