Akademisches Auslandsamt /

International Office

General Information on Accommodation in Magdeburg

Hello international student!

The following text contains many important points to consider before getting accommodation in
Magdeburg. It is based on our experience as student assistants and on questions and issues
brought to our knowledge by generations of international students. You can read it selectively if
you want, but we suggest you to go through the whole text.

Our role
A short note about the student assistants: In the past some international students got confused
about our function, especially regarding our role in the whole process. So to avoid confusion: We
do not work for any landlord and we are not employed by the Studentenwerk (the institution
managing the student halls). We are students ourselves who got hired by the University to assist
international incomings. As such, we know all the major landlords and we also work together with
the Studentenwerk. We try to keep good relationships with all of the mentioned institutions but
we cannot “order” them to do things for us. In the past we got a number of requests like: “Give
me a room in the student halls from 1st of October” and so on. We can’t do that. Requests like that
have to be addressed to the Studentenwerk (https://www.studentenwerk-magdeburg.de/en
/accommodation/) directly. If, for example, that fails, we are there to help you to find a different
solution.

Arranging accommodation from abroad

Once you arrive in Magdeburg, finding accommodation will become much easier. In most cases it
is not possible to make a contract with a landlord before you arrive (there are exceptions, though).
We strongly recommend meeting up personally after your arrival in Magdeburg. We (the student
assistants) will have meetings for newcomers at least two times a week in the beginning of the
summer and winter semester. Individual appointments can be arranged too, if necessary. From
our experience it should be possible to arrange accommodation within one or two weeks
(maximum). But that strongly depends on your preferences regarding things like quality, price and
location of your flat.

Arranging short-time accommodation

If you need accommodation for the first few days, we recommend booking a room in a youth
hostel or a pension. If you know people in Magdeburg already, asking someone for a short-time
stay might be an option too. Another possibility would be to search for a couchsurfing-host if you
are familiar with these kinds of services (e.g.: https://www.couchsurfing.org/). The internet page
“booking.com” can be recommended, as it is quite convenient – you can make your adjustments
(language, time of booking etc.) there to search for available accommodation and also book rooms
online.

Akademisches Auslandsamt / Assistance for accomodation

Contact: wohnung.akaa@googlemail.com / accommodation.ovgu@gmail.com
Here are some suggestions for hostels and pensions in Magdeburg
http://www.booking.com
http://magdeburg.djh-sachsen-anhalt.de
http://www.gaestehaus-citycarree.de/html/zimmer.html
http://jugendherberge-in-magdeburg.de
http://www.ringel-hostel.de

It might be a good idea to show your letter of approval as a student to the personnel – sometimes
you can save the membership-fee in the youth-hostel (Jugendherberge) as a student.

Landlords in Magdeburg who have special offers for long-term accommodation for students

Company Link/Contact
WOBAU http://www.wobau-magdeburg.de/studentenwohnungen.asp
Contact: Ms. Rettig / nicole.rettig@wobau-magdeburg.de
MWG http://www.mdwohnen.de

Grundtec Bauregie GmBH www.studenten-wohnen.net

Contact: Ms. Stefanie Neuberg / sneuberg@grundtec.net
Lorenzquartier http://www.lorenzquartier.de
Contact: vermietung@lorenzquartier.de
Studentenwohnpark ZKB http://www.studenten-in-magdeburg.de

Livus Student & Micro Living http://www.livus.de

Contact: magdeburg@livus.de or info@livus.de

Flat-sharing and intermediate rent

The majority of students in Germany live in shared flats (called "Wohngemeinschaften" or “WG”)
as this is a good way to save money and to socialize with other people. Also, a lot of German
students are renting their rooms for one or two semesters to go abroad themselves (it is called
"Zwischenmiete" in German). These rooms are often furnished. In general you'll find lots of offers
for rooms in shared apartments all over the city. Most of the offers will be in German. If you tell us
some details, we can search through them and translate some relevant ones for you. Last but not
least you can type "möblierte wohnung magdeburg" for furnished apartments or simply "wohnung
magdeburg" for unfurnished ones into Google. Here is a list of websites containing mostly offers
for shared flats:
http://www.wg-gesucht.de/en/
http://www.studenten-wg.de
http://www.zwischenmiete.de

Why not start up a shared flat?

If you’re coming to Magdeburg and you already know some people who also start at the same
time, it might be an idea to share a flat together. This would be a cheap option, as you would
share the rent and related costs between you. There are lots of larger flats available here (2 rooms
and more) and they are often easier to get than one-room apartments. Those flats usually lack an
installed kitchen (and other furniture) but if you team up with a couple of fellow students, it might
pay out in the end. Let us know if that would be an option for you.

Akademisches Auslandsamt / Assistance for accomodation

Contact: wohnung.akaa@googlemail.com / accommodation.ovgu@gmail.com
Room prices and furniture
In general, the price for a furnished room should range between 230 and 350 euro, depending on
location, size and quality. If you spend more, you will get more ;) Good locations in Magdeburg are
for example Alte Neustadt (that’s where the main campus is located), Altstadt, Stadtfeld, Leipziger
Straße or Werder. Generally, fully furnished apartments are more expensive and harder to find in
Magdeburg. Unfurnished rooms and flats can sometimes be a lot cheaper than the prices
mentioned above. In that case you can find cheap second hand furniture if you check one of the
various “An- und Verkauf” stores we have here. Also a lot of senior students give away their
furniture for small prices when they leave.

Here are some Facebook-groups where you can buy second-hand furniture:
IKUS Magdeburg – Second Hand: https://www.facebook.com/groups/ikusmd.sh/
Buy & Sell @ Magdeburg: https://www.facebook.com/groups/517920071592503/

Information on other issues / further support

For questions other than finding accommodation (visa, enrolment, insurance etc.) you can contact
the International Office of the OVGU. If you have questions related to your studies, you can
contact the staff at your faculty/course of study. There normally are employees assisting new
students in matters of any kind. Look for a contact-address on the webpage of your specific
faculty/course of studies. In addition, there are several guidelines addressing international
incomings in Magdeburg. Google “Magdeburg international student first step” or go to:
http://bit.ly/2ck8nk2

For questions not concerning accommodation, the students from IKUS (Inter-Cultural-Students
Magdeburg) are also happy to support you (ikus@ovgu.de). Also, please consider joining the
Buddy-Program (https://ria.stura-md.de/language/en/buddy-program/). There you can get in contact
with a local student who can greatly help you to settle in during your first weeks in Magdeburg.

If you are going to study at the Faculty of Economics, we recommend you to contact the students
working in the SIMP-SON (http://www.manec.ovgu.de/SIMP_SON.html) program, as they offer help
for newcomers at that faculty. Lastly, for international Ph.D candidates and Ph.D graduates there
exists a support organization called MIPS (http://www.mips.ovgu.de/mips/en/) which offers
assistance as well.

Our contact information / Our Facebook group

Feel free to contact us for assistance to find an apartment or if you have any other problems
regarding accommodation. You are also invited to join our Facebook group which we have set up
to discuss problems, set up meeting dates or to exchange offers/requests for accommodation:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/494674933894762/

Feel free to ask any further questions!

Our Email: wohnung.akaa@googlemail.com or accommodation.ovgu@gmail.com

Your OVGU Student Assistants

Akademisches Auslandsamt / Assistance for accomodation

Contact: wohnung.akaa@googlemail.com / accommodation.ovgu@gmail.com