How does the ballot vote work?

All students have the opportunity to vote on campus during a fixed period (20.04 - 24.04). The required voter turnout for an effective resolution is 5% of all students according to the Student Council statutes. If this is not achieved, the Student Council itself will pass a resolution. However, the voting results will still be taken into account.

What is a Deutschlandsemesterticket?

The Deutschlandsemesterticket is a semester ticket version of the Deutschlandticket. It is offered to the student bodies and includes the same services as the normal Deutschlandticket. However, it only costs 60% of the price and is only offered as a solidarity model per university.

In concrete terms, this means that you can use your semester ticket to travel on regional German rail services and public transport throughout Germany. The Germany semester ticket or will cost €37.80/month from October 2026, i.e. €226.80 per semester contribution.

What does solidarity model mean?

A solidarity model describes a common ticket variant for semester tickets in which all students at the university are obliged to purchase the ticket (through their semester contributions), regardless of whether they use it. The resulting increased order quantity reduces the price per person. The ticket is therefore co-financed by those who do not use it, thus incentivising them to use public transport.

Why is the ticket more expensive?

The ticket costs as much as 60% of the regular Deutschlandticket (€63). If the price rises, the price of the Deutschlandsemesterticket will also rise. The price of €37.80/month could therefore also rise again.

Who is selling this ticket?

The ticket is sold by EVAG. It can only be purchased in this form via the semester ticket with the semester contribution. Individual students cannot independently purchase a discounted nationwide ticket from EVAG if the ballot votes against the introduction of the nationwide semester ticket for all.

What risks does the ticket entail?

The fact that the Deutschlandsemesterticket is directly linked to the Deutschlandticket in terms of price (at 60%) means that an increase in the price of the Deutschlandticket is also an increase for the Deutschlandsemesterticket. The financing of the Deutschlandticket by the federal government is not guaranteed on an ongoing basis, which is why such a price increase will probably soon become a reality. The Student Council and the Studierendwerk have already included a clause in the existing contracts for the current semester ticket (see above) which ensures that these contracts will not be terminated when the Deutschlandticket is introduced, but only suspended. We therefore have a fall-back solution should the price increases lead to us cancelling the Deutschlandticket.

What is a ballot?

A ballot is an instrument used by the Student Council to decide on amendments to the statutes and fundamental issues. It is not your elected representatives who decide on the respective issue, but the entire student body votes.

How does the ballot vote work?

All students have the opportunity to vote during a fixed period (06.05-10.05.). You will receive the access and details of the procedure in an email before the election. The required voter turnout for an effective resolution is 5% of all students according to the Student Council statutes. If this is not reached, the Student Council itself will pass a resolution. However, the voting results will still be taken into account.

What does the Student Council think about the ticket?

The Student Council, like other student representatives, welcomes the introduction of a semester ticket that allows you to be mobile throughout Germany. We had already criticised the ticket during the negotiations (seehere), but we are nevertheless in favour of its introduction at the University of Erfurt. The attractive pricing and the possibility of reactivating dormant contracts when leaving the university are particularly in favour of the introduction.

What happens if the ballot is in favour of continuing the nationwide ticket?

The ticket becomes more expensive, but nothing else happens.

What happens if the ballot vote is against the continuation of the nationwide ticket?

Then the Student Council will reject the price increase. In this case, we would return to the old semester ticket. It includes local public transport (EVAG module), extended public transport in Thuringia (VMT module) and Deutsche Bahn regional transport in Thuringia (DB Regio module) and costs €33.57/month. However, this price would have to be recalculated and would also increase.

Where can I get more information?

On Instagram, in the old newsletters or in person from the members of the Student Council. There will also be information stands on campus.