Berlin, May 31, 2026 Matthias Anbuhl, Chairman of the Board of Deutsches Studierendenwerk (DSW), comments on the statements by Federal Minister Dorothee Bär (CSU) that she expects the promised BAföG reform to come to an end as there is no longer any support for it in the CDU/CSU parliamentary group:
“The Federal Research Minister has obviously lost all interest in the younger generation. There is no trace of her commitment to BAföG and students. On the contrary, her argumentation shows that she seems to have completely decoupled herself from the reality of students’ lives. While billions are being spent on the fuel rebate, the mothers’ pension, a higher commuter allowance and subsidized agricultural diesel, the minister herself and, above all, the CDU/CSU parliamentary group apparently want to fob off students for another four years with zero rates.
The CDU/CSU has drastically lost support among young voters in recent elections. If the coalition does indeed break its BAföG promise, this trend is likely to continue. Incidentally, if the BAföG amendment is not passed, the coalition will also break its promise to make BAföG simpler. A new KI-BAföG bot is good, but does not solve the underlying structural problems with BAföG. The last BAföG increase was in 2024. If the coalition breaks its BAföG promise, there is a threat of six years without an adjustment of funding to the increased prices. In view of the price trend in recent years, this is a substantial cut in real terms. The upcoming increase in the BAföG housing allowance would not be that expensive; in the current budget alone, the fuel discount costs almost 25 times as much.
Not increasing BAföG is forgetting about the future. After all, today’s students are tomorrow’s engineers, IT experts, teachers and doctors. The shortage of skilled workers will worsen in the coming years as the boomer generation gradually retires. Our society cannot afford to drop out of university for lack of money. The government’s innovation policy and high-tech agenda can only be implemented with qualified specialists. The minister and the CDU/CSU parliamentary group are sawing at the branch on which they themselves are sitting.
When the Minister says that students are privileged, she has lost touch with the reality of many students’ lives. According to the Federal Statistical Office, half of all students have less than 930 euros a month. According to recent studies, an average room in a shared flat in Germany already costs 512 euros. According to the Federal Statistical Office, two thirds of students who no longer live with their parents are overburdened with their rent payments. And the flat-rate housing allowance will remain at 380 euros until 2030 – if the coalition refrains from adjusting BAföG? That cannot be a serious policy.
Regarding students’ part-time jobs: 63% of students work alongside their studies – on average 15 hours per week. With 35 hours a week that students need for their studies, they therefore work 50 hours a week. This is according to the latest social survey, which incidentally was published by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research itself. In view of these facts, why is the Minister saying that students are privileged? Does the Research Minister not read her own studies? Does the Research Minister really want to talk about the younger generation in this way?
Perhaps the CDU and CSU will remember the coronavirus pandemic. It was precisely these young people, who are now studying, who showed solidarity during the pandemic and paid a high price for it. After businesses opened while schools and universities were still closed, they later said: We will no longer neglect the younger generation. This promise is probably nothing but hot air for the Union.”
