Staatliche Hochschule für Bildende Künste (Städelschule) Frankfurt am Main
Frankfurt am Main, Hessen, Germany
- Founded
- 1817
- Students
- 150
- International
- 75%
About Staatliche Hochschule für Bildende Künste (Städelschule) Fra
The Staatliche Hochschule fuer Bildende Kuenste (StaedeIschule) is a public art academy in Frankfurt am Main, Hessen, rooted in the art foundation created by the Frankfurt merchant Johann Friedrich Stadel in 1817. It is one of Germany's smallest and most selective art schools, with about 150 students enrolled in 2025 and a majority-international student body. For its core programme the school deliberately stays outside the Bologna bachelor-master model: students complete a ten-semester fine arts course - taught in artist-led classes such as Film and Sculpture/Plastic Art plus interdisciplinary artistic work - concluding with an artistic final examination rather than a BA/MA. In addition it offers a Master of Arts in Curatorial and Critical Studies run jointly with Goethe University Frankfurt. English is the main language of instruction. Admission is by portfolio submission followed by an aptitude examination, with registration each November for entry to the following winter semester. Beyond teaching, the school runs experimental research formats including the Institute for Art Criticism, Gasthof and The Frankfurt Prototype, and sits in Frankfurt's museum landscape around the Stadel.
Single fine-arts programme studied in classes each led by one professor with up to 20 students; 10-semester course ending with the degree Independent Artist.
Guest study (per semester, max three semesters) and Erasmus+/exchange semesters available; language of instruction English.
faculties_count remains omitted: the relaunched SPA website publishes class-based teaching only, no faculty structure (checked Aug 2026 via the site's CMS API).
Key facts
- Founded
- 1817
- Students
- 150
- International
- ~62-75%
Admissions & fees
What it costs
No tuition fees are charged for the listed programmes (public Hessen art academy; MyGermanUniversity lists 'No tuition fees'). No semester-contribution amount appears in the fetched official or HRK listings, so prospective students should confirm current administrative contributions with the student secretariat ([email protected]).
Admission requirements
Admission to the fine arts programme is by portfolio submission followed by an aptitude examination (Eignungspruefung); registration runs from 1-30 November each year for admission to the following year's winter semester (winter intake only). Standard period of study is 10 semesters leading to the artistic final examination. The MA Curatorial and Critical Studies has a separate application round - the most recent cycle published on the school's site closed 10 April. Applicants should verify current portfolio requirements on the school's application pages; no uni-assist procedure appears in the official listings.
Application deadlines
Online application window Nov 1-30 for the winter semester of the following year.
How international applicants apply
Not used. Applications are submitted online directly to the Staedelschule from November 1 to November 30 each year for the winter semester of the following year; aptitude/portfolio review by the chosen professor's class. No uni-assist or VPD is mentioned in the official application information.
Languages of instruction
All courses and class meetings are held in English; sufficient English and German skills recommended, but no German or English language certificate is required.
Student accommodation
What Staatliche Hochschule für Bildende Künste (Städelschule) Fra publishes about housing. German universities do not allocate rooms themselves, so the links below are where applications actually go.
From the university
Frankfurt's housing market is competitive, so students typically use shared flats and Studentenwerk dormitories early in their search.
Campuses & locations
Single campus at Duererstrasse 10, 60596 Frankfurt am Main; address per Higher Education Compass institutional listing
Living in Frankfurt am Main
Frankfurt am Main has around 750,000 residents and hosts some 25 higher education institutions. Germany's financial centre combines an international population, the Museumsufer riverbank museum mile - including the Stadel Museum whose founder endowed the school's parent foundation - and excellent long-distance rail and air connections via one of Europe's largest airports.
Student life & support
Studio-centred study at a single small site gives close contact between the roughly 150 students and their artist-professors; workshops support sculpture, film and interdisciplinary work. The International Office ([email protected], contact Fernanda Wammes) handles exchange matters and the school maintains exchange partnerships listed under its application/exchange pages. Frankfurt's housing market is competitive, so students typically use shared flats and Studentenwerk dormitories early in their search.
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