Disability-related advice services

There are various advice services and self-help groups at the University of Münster and in the city of Münster which provide general advice on disability-related issues or deal with specific forms of disabilities.

Services at the University of Münster

Discussion group for students with autism

This moderated discussion group for students with autism meets every six weeks during the semester on a Thursday at 5:30 pm. The meetings allow students from the Münster University of Applied Sciences and the University of Münster to get to know one another and share their experiences. This is not a self-help group but rather a discussion group led by counsellors from the Student Advice and Counselling Centre (ZSB) and is specifically targeted at students with autism at the two universities. In a relaxed atmosphere, participants can discuss the special challenges they face in academic life and how they cope with everyday problems.

For more information about upcoming meetings and how to register, contact the Student Advice and Counselling Centre (ZSB) [de].

Contact:
Volker Koscielny
Student Advice and Counselling Centre (ZSB) of the University of Münster
Schlossplatz 5
48149 Münster
Tel: +49 251 83-22082
Volker.Koscielny@uni-muenster.de

Accompanying support services for students recovering from psychological illnesses

For students who have had to discontinue their studies or could only pursue them intermittently due to a psychological illness, the University of Münster offers special support services to help them return to university and resume their degree programmes. These services are primarily targeted at students who have received full or partial in-patient treatment.

If you are interested in the support services, please contact the Student Advice and Counselling Centre (ZSB) [de].

Self-help group for students with psychological ailments

The Student Advice and Counselling Centre (ZSB) supports the establishment of academically related self-help groups. The ZSB staff offers organisational support in planning and conducting the first group meetings, finding suitable rooms and supervising group processes. Beyond this initial support, the self-help groups are responsible for organising their activities as they wish.

Currently, there is a self-help group for students with psychological ailments. The group offers participants a chance to share their experiences and mutually support one another with developing strategies to cope with personal, social and organisational problems (e.g. illness-related interruptions of study, motivation and learning difficulties, fear of testing situations), as well as other topics related to the thematic complex "psychological disorders and study".

Information and Contact at the Student Advice and Counselling Centre (ZSB) [de]

Externally provided services

The city of Münster has published a PDF brochure containing a list of advice services which help people with disabilities lead self-determined lives (download the PDF brochure in German here).

Self-help groups

The self-help contact office of the Münster Paritätische Wohlfahrtsverband advises and supports individuals who wish to start self-help groups on a diverse range of topics. The staff serve as intermediaries between potentially interested participants and the respective self-help groups. The following link provides a list of existing self-help groups and further contact details: www.selbsthilfe-muenster.de/content/ [de].

Lebenstraum peer counseling

The support service “Lebenstraum Münster” is based on the peer-counselling principle, i.e. the disabled supporting the disabled - without bias and entirely devoted to those seeking advice. Our staff provides advice on a broad range of topics (e.g. personal budget, living situation, applying for assistance services etc.) which promote participation of disabled persons in society. For contact details and further information visit:
http://www.lebenstraum-teilhabeberatung.de/ [de]

Provided services for various forms of disabilities

Below you will find a list of local, regional and national counselling offices – arranged according to the forms of disabilities – which also offer support services to students with disabilities.

Sensory impairments

Online platform "Gateway"

Gateway is a handicapped-accessible platform for the hearing and visually impaired and contains helpful information on selecting degree programmes, managing academic life and gaining career orientation. The communication platform is managed in cooperation with the IT College in Putbus, the RWTH Aachen University and the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT).
For more information, visit: www.gateway-online.de [de]

German Association of the Blind and Visually Impaired in Academic and Professional Life (DVBS)

Deutscher Verein der Blinden und Sehbehinderten in Studium und Beruf e. V. (DVBS)
Frauenbergstraße 8, 35039 Marburg
Tel: +49 6421 948880
Fax: +49 6421 9488810
info@dvbs-online.de
www.dvbs-online.de [de]

Counselling Centre for the Hearing Impaired in Münster

For more information and contact details, visit the german website of the Counselling Centre for the Hearing Impaired in Münster [de].

The Münster Centre for the Hearing Impaired

For more information and contact details, visit the website of the Münster Centre for the Hearing Impaired [de].

National Association of Hearing Impaired Students and Graduates (BHSA)

Die Bundesarbeitsgemeinschaft Hörbehinderter Studenten und Absolventen e.V. (BHSA)
Hinter der Hochstätte 2b, 65239 Hochheim
Tel: +49 6146 835537
Fax: +49 6146 835538
beratung@bhsa.de
www.bhsa.de [de]

Specific learning disabilities and speech impairments

The National Association for Dyslexia and Dyscalculia (BVL)

Der Bundesverband Legasthenie und Dyskalkulie (BVL)
c/o EZB Bonn
Postfach 201338
53143 Bonn
Tel: +49 700 285 285 285

beratung@bvl-legasthenie.de
www.bvl-legasthenie.de/ausbildung-beruf/legasthenie-studium.html [de]

Federal Association for Stuttering and Self-Help

Bundesvereinigung Stottern & Selbsthilfe e.V.
Informations- und Beratungsstelle
Zülpicher Straße 58
50674 Köln
Tel: +49 221 139-1106
Fax: +49 221 139-1370
info@bvss.de
www.bvss.de [de]

Chronic somatic disorders

studiCED Network

Information, newsletter and contact details for students with chronic inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD))
studiCED
c/o Deutsche Morbus Crohn / Colitis ulcerosa Vereinigung – DCCV e.V.
Inselstraße 1
10179 Berlin
beratung@studiCED.de
https://studiced.de [de]