About us
The friendly atmosphere, the individual mentoring, the advanced academic knowledge and the possibility to transfer that knowledge directly into practice is what our students value the most.
Our Leitmotif “Empowering People – Finding Solutions” concisely describes our educational ambition: We want to provide an environment in which young people can develop their personality, strengthen their soul, enrich their intellect, organize their ideas and train their academic and professional skills.
KatHO NRW is the largest Catholic University of Applied Sciences for studies in social services, health science and practical theology in Germany.
Programmes
The main focus of our international programme is the Erasmus+ in the Bachelor’s programme of Social Work. The courses are partly taught in English. We have campuses in Aachen, Cologne, Münster and Paderborn of which each has a distinct international programme (details below).
But you are also welcome to plan your term abroad in one of our further programmes, such as Special Education, Nursing Science or Practical Theology or in our masters’ programmes. To find out more see our flyer. Note that these courses are taught in German.
Studying at KatHO is characterized by an excellent student-to-teacher ratio which is also reflected in top positions at the university ranking CHE.
Application
You can find a list of the universities we cooperate with here. If your university is among them, great! Please contact the International Office of your university. They will nominate you for a guest semester. If you are nominated you will receive further information on the application procedure.
If your university is not among our partner universities you can still apply for a term abroad provided that you are enrolled in one of the university programmes (or comparable) in your home country listed in our flyer. Please contact us via the form at the bottom of the website. Non-EU-residents will need a student visa.
Language requirements for the Bachelor’s programme Social Work is English, for all other courses German is required at level B1 according to GER.
Culture & Living
A term abroad does not only promote your academic career. It also offers the chance to broaden your personal horizon: practice a new language, make new acquaintances, learn about German culture and participate in everyday life in a foreign country. All four cities offer a vast variety of activities in art, culture, leisure and sports. Furthermore, with the so called “NRW-Ticket” you can travel with public transportation throughout NRW for free.
KatHO NRW provides a very individual support for foreign students, so you won’t feel lost at our university. You can participate in study groups or in the students’ council and thus be part of the KatHO community. Moreover we are planning academic and cultural gatherings with foreign students on other campuses.

International Office
Helene Hofmann
Head of International Office, Erasmus / Institutional Coordinator
International Office
Julia Fleißig
Mobility programmes and international projects
International Office
Matthias Kaufmann
Counselling for Incoming and Outgoing students, Aachen/Cologne
International Office
Katrin Verhorst
Counselling for Incoming and Outgoing students, Muenster/Paderborn
Dept. of Social Work
Regine Müller
English study programme at the Department of Muenster CampusCatholic University of Applied Sciences of North Rhine-Westphalia
International Office
Woerthstr. 10
50668 Cologne
Germany
e-mail: incoming@katho-nrw.de
web: www.katho-nrw.de/katho-nrw/internationales/incomings/