University of Fine Arts Hamburg University of Fine Arts Hamburg is a public university of fine arts in Hamburg, Germany. The University of Fine Arts Hamburg / HFBK Hamburg is a public fine-art university with a focus on independent studio practice in eight departments. We offer academic and practice-based PhD paths. Its institutional development includes 1767 — the earliest educational root of the institution, the Hamburg drawing school. Applied art, craft, and professional design supplemented drawing in nineteenth-century teaching. Today its academic profile is constituted by painting and drawing, sculpture, time-based media, film, photography, graphic art, design, stage design, theory and history, art education, exhibition and artistic research. The place The main Lerchenfeld building and associated studios are located in Hamburg, a big port and media city, whose museums, galleries, theatres, publishers, production companies, design firms, artist-run spaces and international cultural networks provide a wide professional context.

This master file contains a course portfolio with 1 undergraduate entry and 1 postgraduate entry. Subject combinations have been grouped under their parent degrees where applicable. Examples for undergraduate include Fine Arts, whereas later entries cover Fine Arts. Postgraduate study ranges from Art Fine to Fine Arts. The specialisations are named in the course entry and not falsely presented as separate degrees. Each course still counts as a parent qualification. HFBK offers a full eight-semester Bachelor of Fine Arts and a four-semester Master of Fine Arts, with departments and studio fields being treated as specialisations; the academic Dr. phil. in art. and the new PhD in Art Practice are separate doctoral qualifications.

Admission is controlled by the program. Students applying for bachelor’s and master’s degrees complete the online process and submit an artistic portfolio for selection by the faculty. They also need to provide program-specific academic and language evidence. Applicants for Dr. phil. and PhD Art Practice have separate calls and need to have an eligible degree, a project proposal, supervision or selection and research materials. Applicants must verify the language of instruction, entry semester, subject prerequisites, selection process and document route before submission. International School or University Qualifications External evaluation, certified translations, APS documentation where applicable or other proof of academic equivalence may be required. Master’s committees may require module descriptions, portfolios, writing samples, professional experience or interviews. The entry to a doctorate is separate from admission to a bachelor or master degree and normally requires a viable research proposal, eligible supervision and formal acceptance by the responsible faculty.

Regular study is tuition-free. Contribution for the winter semester 2026/27 without transport ticket € 161.20 + € 226.80 for the Germany semester ticket = € 388.00 artistic materials, workshop use, production, equipment and excursions are additional. These institutional charges do not include rent, health insurance, food, learning materials, residence formalities, project costs or personal travel. If provided for by the relevant law or program regulation, special tuition may be provided for continuing-education, distance-learning, joint, second-degree, or long-term study formats. Funding (e.g. BAföG for eligible students, Deutschlandstipendium, DAAD and Erasmus+ mobility support, foundations, research employment or university-specific awards) is available, but each funding application is evaluated separately from admission.

Career preparation is in line with the university’s subject mix and is not a guarantyd placement scheme. Internships, applied projects, research assistantships, employer events, language development, entrepreneurship services, international mobility and a thesis developed in cooperation with an external partner can all help to improve professional readiness.