ArbeiterKind.de

ArbeiterKind.de is a German non-profit initiative and social enterprise that supports young people from non-academic families who want to study at university. Founded in 2008 by Katja Urbatsch together with Wolf Dermann and Marc Urbatsch, it began as an internet portal offering study tips and quickly grew into Germany's largest community for educational climbers. Its mission is to raise the share of first-generation students in higher education and to accompany them from the end of school through to successful career entry. The organisation addresses a well-documented gap: while 78% of children from academic families start university, only 25% of children from non-academic families do so, according to figures cited on its website. ArbeiterKind.de attributes this less to ability than to an information deficit and cultural reservations within families. Its answer is a nationwide network of several thousand volunteers organised in over 80 local groups, many of whom were themselves the first in their family to study. These volunteers offer personal advice on study planning, financing, academic work and applications — free of charge. Beyond local groups, ArbeiterKind.de operates an information telephone and WhatsApp service, publishes study guides and interviews, and runs a mentoring programme. It is headquartered in Berlin and is legally constituted as a non-profit limited liability company (gemeinnützige GmbH). It is a member of the Social Entrepreneurship Netzwerk Deutschland. The initiative has received numerous awards, including recognition in the startsocial competition in 2008, selection as a "Land der Ideen" location in 2009, and the Bundesverdienstkreuz am Bande for founder Katja Urbatsch in 2018. ArbeiterKind.de positions itself as a community rather than a classic charity: it shares lived experience to inspire and empower, makes barriers visible and advocates for educational equity. Its vision is a society in which social background no longer influences study decisions or study success.

ArbeiterKind.de was founded in 2008 by Katja Urbatsch, her brother Marc Urbatsch and Wolf Dermann, together with two colleagues from Justus Liebig University Giessen. The idea grew out of Katja Urbatsch's personal experience as the first person in her family to earn a university degree: she lacked role models and support, and felt disoriented at the start of her studies. Many young people from non-academic families share this experience, often not knowing how to finance their studies, how university life works, how to write academic papers, or what terms like "Studierendenwerk", "Audimax" or "c.t." mean. The project was implemented within the framework of the startsocial competition in 2008, where Katja Urbatsch and Wolf Dermann received a certificate from Chancellor Angela Merkel. On 5 May 2008 the platform went online with study tips and immediately attracted widespread public interest. Media reported nationwide, and within a short time numerous first-generation students and academics volunteered to get involved. Since then, ArbeiterKind.de has grown from a small internet portal into Germany's largest community for educational climbers. It now has several thousand volunteers organised in over 80 local groups across Germany, offering regulars' tables (Stammtische) in cities such as Berlin, Bremen, Frankfurt am Main, Giessen, Hamburg, Heidelberg, Munich and Münster. The organisation is headquartered in Berlin and operates as a non-profit limited liability company (gemeinnützige GmbH). It is a member of the Social Entrepreneurship Netzwerk Deutschland. The initiative has received numerous awards. In September 2008 it was honoured with the Engagementpreis of the association of former FES scholarship holders and included in the federal selection of the best 25 projects in the startsocial competition. In 2009 it was one of the selected locations in the "Germany – Land of Ideas" competition under the patronage of then Federal President Horst Köhler, and in the winter semester 2009/10 it was among the winners of the 4th federal competition "Students for Students: Studentenwerkspreis" for special social engagement. In 2015 Mensa in Deutschland e.V. awarded ArbeiterKind.de the IQ-Preis in the category "Hochbegabung in der Öffentlichkeit". On 2 October 2018 founder and managing director Katja Urbatsch received the Bundesverdienstkreuz am Bande from Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier at Bellevue Palace, recognising her long-standing social engagement and outstanding commitment to educational equity and cultural participation in Germany.

• 2018

  Founder Katja Urbatsch receives the Bundesverdienstkreuz am Bande from Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier on 2 October 2018.

• 2015

  Awarded the IQ-Preis 2015 by Mensa in Deutschland e.V. in the category "Hochbegabung in der Öffentlichkeit".

• 2009

  Selected as one of the locations in the "Germany – Land of Ideas" competition under the patronage of Federal President Horst Köhler.

• 2009

  Among the winners of the 4th federal competition "Students for Students: Studentenwerkspreis" in the winter semester 2009/10.

• 2008

  ArbeiterKind.de founded by Katja Urbatsch, Marc Urbatsch and Wolf Dermann; platform goes online on 5 May 2008.

• 2008

  Awarded the Engagementpreis of the association of former FES scholarship holders and included in the federal selection of the best 25 projects in the startsocial competition.

Non-profit community and social enterprise for educational equity, targeting first-generation students and their families in Germany.

• Information portal with study tips

  Online platform offering guidance on study planning, financing and academic life.

• Local groups and Stammtische

  Over 80 local groups across Germany offering personal support and regular meet-ups.

• Mentoring programme

  Volunteer mentors support first-generation students on their educational path.

• Infotelefon and WhatsApp advice

  Free telephone and WhatsApp service for study-related questions.

1. 1ArbeiterKind.de – official websitearbeiterkind.de
2. 2Geschichte | ArbeiterKind.dearbeiterkind.de
3. 3Über uns | ArbeiterKind.dearbeiterkind.de
4. 4Team | ArbeiterKind.dearbeiterkind.de
5. 5ArbeiterKind.de – Wikipedia (German)de.wikipedia.org
6. 6ArbeiterKind.de – Wikidatawikidata.org