The official length of a semester at Freie Universität Berlin is 6 months
(winter term: 1 October – 31 March; summer term: 1 April - 30 September).
However, scholarships are usually awarded only for a student's pure study period which is considerably shorter.

Scholarship-awarding organizations usually make their final account on the basis of a study period confirmation issued by Freie Universität Berlin at the end of the study abroad period. In this study period confirmation we can only confirm a student's attendance from the first day of the intensive language course or from the first day of the orientation period through the last day of the lecture period or through the day of the last exam.

The period which scholarship holders get paid for is therefore between four and five months per semester only.