The Berlin University of the Arts Foundation is a charitable foundation as defined by civil law in Berlin. In accordance with the bylaws the foundation’s goal is to contribute to the lasting support of art and culture, education, arts-related sciences and research. In particular, our aim is to provide financial support to studies and teaching at the University of the Arts – one the largest, most diverse and richest in tradition universities of the arts in the world.

The Berlin University of the Arts Foundation is a young institution that has evolved over time: Over the past 100 years, many private individuals have generously bequeathed assets — some of them substantial — to the Berlin University of the Arts, its individual predecessor institutions, and, beginning in the 1970s, the HdK Berlin.

The Berlin University of the Arts Foundation is an operating as well as grant-making foundation.

The foundation’s curatorial committee, made up of elected members of the university, gathers ideas and suggestions that in turn fill the foundation with life. In consultation with the foundation’s donors, this committee decides how to use the foundation’s resources with the goal of advancing education and research in the arts and arts-related sciences.

Fine Arts:

• Ursula-Hanke-Förster-Stiftung – Universität der Künste Berlin (udk-berlin.de)
• Thoma-Stiftung – Universität der Künste Berlin (udk-berlin.de)
• Ulrich und Burga Knispel-Stiftung – Universität der Künste Berlin (udk-berlin.de

Music:

• Violinwettbewerb Ibolyka Gyarfas
• Klavierwettbewerb Artur Schnabel
• Alice Samter Kammermusikwettbewerb
• Emanuel Feuermann Scholarship

Design:

• Competition by the student council of the Architecture programme

Performing Arts:

• Competition Aribert-Reimann

Founder can make an impact here in a variety of ways and support studies and teaching at the Berlin University of the Arts by sponsoring individual projects and focus areas, helping to shape new, interdisciplinary programmes or develop innovative subject areas with an endowed professorship. Get in touch with us to find out more about our current projects and tell us about your own ideas.

The civic engagement expressed so generously in all these contributions supports the Berlin University of the Arts in a wonderful way. Because teaching projects, scholarships, prizes, competitions, interdisciplinary ties and artistic experiments that seek to try something exceptional and set new benchmarks all depend on private individuals, companies and other foundations’ willingness to support them.

Please support the foundation’s work and thus a new generation of artists and scholars in one of the following areas: prizes and scholarships, spaces in which to flourish, excellence in teaching and research.

Would you like to support the foundation’s work? Please get in touch with us. We’d be happy to explore ideas with you or tell you about projects that need support. 

Our annual reports provide comprehensive insight into the work of the foundation. You can download the foundation's annual report (covering the period from 1 July 2023 to 31 December 2024) as a PDF file here (german version).

Along with civic engagement within the Berlin University of the Arts Foundation, there are also other options at the university to get involved and provide support:

• Become a member of one of the six friends of the university associations: 
  • Freundeskreis der UdK Berlin | Karl Hofer Gesellschaft e.V. for the support of students and graduates of the University of the Arts Berlin
  • Paul Hindemith Gesellschaft in Berlin e.V. for the promotion of music and performing arts
  • Europäische Freundeskreis des Julius-Stern-Instituts der Universität der Künste Berlin e.V. for the support of young students I European Friends of Julius Stern Institute of the University of the Arts
  • Freunde des Studiengangs Schauspiel der UdK Berlin e.V.
  • Verein der Freunde und Förderer des Staats- und Domchores Berlin e. V.
  • https://transfer-gwk.de - association of our study program "Communication in Social and Economic Contexts" 

or

• Donations to the Early Music Society Berlin e. V.
• Sponsors of the Deutschlandstipendium for talented and high-performing students