Counceling for trans students

Transberatung

General information

We are students who address queer issues and the challenges faced by trans, intersex, and non-binary people. We stand against discrimination at the university and support students with their problems. Our counseling focuses primarily on trans issues. However, we are open to anyone who could benefit from our counseling, regardless of gender or sexual orientation.

As a peer counseling service, we’re here for you and offer a listening ear. Life can be tough at times, but that’s exactly when a conversation can sometimes lead to new solutions or bring relief. We ourselves are gay and trans and are familiar with queer life in Berlin as well as the support services available in the city. If issues fall outside our area of expertise, we’re happy to help by referring you to professional counseling services and supporting those seeking help on their journey. Of course, all contact is subject to confidentiality, and we strive to create a safe space for counseling.

We can support you as peer to peer counceling and offer an open ear for you. There can be tough situations in life. Sometimes a talk can lead you to new solutions or just provide some relief. We are trans and homosexual and know the queer life in Berlin as well as support offers in the city. If topics go beyond our level of competence we gladly support you by directing you to a professional counceling and support you on your journey.

As an anti-discrimination counseling service, we aim to support you in navigating the structural barriers and experiences you face at the university. Whether it involves specific experiences of discrimination, name changes, attendance lists, or restroom access, please reach out to us if you need help. We also strive to bring about broader change at the university and are available to discuss these issues as well.

Our areas of consulting

Support & resource center for transphobia at Humboldt University
Information on transitioning & name changes (at the university and beyond)
Information on resources in Berlin for professional counseling on sexual health, safer sex, and HIV/STI testing
Coming Out
Places to go out, sports clubs, & cultural events

Contact

Consultaion Hours Summersemester 26:

Tuesday 12.00 - 14.00 Uhr,

Monday and Wednesday if requested by Mail

lecture free period: if requested by Mail

Please equest appointments by Mail

E-Mail: transberatung [ät] refrat.hu-berlin.de

adress: Hedwig-Dohm-Haus, Ziegelstraße 5-9, im Hinterhof.
(nearest train stations: S-Bahn Friedrichstraße, U-Bahn Oranienburger Tor)

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/transberatung/

You can write usan encrypted message. Our public PGP Key is:

Internal name change

Generally speaking, there are two ways to change your gender marker and first name(s) at HU: by presenting your DGTI ID card, or by providing proof of a change through the SBGG. However, the first option applies only to varying degrees to internal HU communications and documents, whereas a change made through the SBGG (ideally) results in a complete update, including correctly issued transcripts and examination records.

Change via DGTI ID card

With this method, names are only updated within the internal systems of the HU. If you proceed with this option, your self-chosen name will additionally be registered in Agnes and should theoretically be automatically adjusted for course selection and registration, as well as in Moodle and Zoom. Furthermore, a QR code will be activated in Agnes to issue a new Campus Card with your self-chosen name. As a result, your semester ticket for the next semester will be issued under your self-chosen first name. If you wish to change your semester ticket earlier, please contact the S-Bahn customer support (studisupport@sbahn.berlin). Additionally, after a successful change, you will be able to download your certificate of enrollment and study confirmation, both with your official name and your self-chosen name. This typically allows for a relatively hassle-free name change surrounding BaföG proceedings. However, additional initiative is required to update your HU email address, your name in the library system, and Shibboleth. For this, you need to contact the CMS (cms-benutzerberatung@hu-berlin.de)

However, this procedure comes with several critical issues. First, examination documents and certificates will continue to be issued under your deadname. Moreover, your login-username for HU systems will remain unchanged. In many cases, this username contains parts of, or even your full deadname. While this username should ideally not be known or visible to others, you will still have to enter it repeatedly yourself. Our own small experiment has also shown that the name associated with your username (your deadname) remains publicly visible in certain HU tools—such as Etherpad—when fellow students or professors enter your self-chosen name there (e.g., to invite you to collaborate). This issue should disappear once you manage to obtain a new email address from the cms. Additionally, in practice, we have observed that the deadname still appears on seminar lists and, in some cases, students have been called up with their deadnames from the list.

For the name change, you (unnecessarily) require a DGTI supplementary certificate. This unfortunately costs €20. You can apply for it here (https://dgti.org/2021/09/05/der-ergaenzungsausweis-der-dgti-e-v/). Processing times range from several weeks to months. If you do not have the necessary funds, there is the possibility of receiving support from the RefRat. It is best to send an email to the transberatung or the Referat für Queer-Feminismus.

Once you have obtained the DGTI certificate, you may upload it via the online form of the HU. You can find the form for name changes here (https://www.hu-berlin.de/de/studium/compass/formular). Under „Thema Ihrer Anfrage“, please select the entry „Änderung Vorname, Nachname, Nationalität“.

After the imatriculation office has processed and approved your (partial) name change, you will unfortunately still need to contact the CMS yourself to request changes to your email address, library account, and any other HU services. Typically, students then receive a new email address, while the old one is deactivated after three months. If you wish to change your name on your public transport ticket during an ongoing semester, please contact the S-Bahn customer support (studisupport@sbahn.berlin).

Change via SBGG

If you update your name and gender entry through the SBGG, you gain broader possibilities to align your data at HU. Nevertheless, this process still requires considerable effort on your part. A change via SBGG is generally available to all German citizens as well as non-citizens who either hold an unlimited residence permit (such as a settlement permit, a renewable residence permit, and are lawfully residing in Germany—according to our knowledge, this also includes student visas—or a EU Blue Card). The procedure is explained, for example, at https://www.berlin.de/standesamt/allgemein/artikel.1451534.php. A disadvantage for international students using this procedure may be that it might not be possible to obtain study certificates and degree transcripts issued under the name you (might have to) continue to use in your country of citizenship. If this applies to you, please contact us, and we will attempt to advocate for a solution with the examination and enrollment office.

If you have a document for the change of your first name and gender marker (amendment certificate, new birth certificate, or new ID), you may upload it via the online form of the HU. You can find the name change form here (https://www.hu-berlin.de/de/studium/compass/formular). Under „Thema Ihrer Anfrage“, please select the entry „Änderung Vorname, Nachname, Nationalität“.

Once the imatriculation office has processed and approved your change, you will automatically receive a new TAN. You can now download your updated imatriculation and study certificates with your correct name. Your examination records, transcripts, and course lists will also automatically reflect your correct name. Additionally, you will receive a QR code for a new campus card via Agnes. Unfortunately, your student ticket will only be automatically updated next semester. You have to contact the S-Bahn customer support (studisupport@sbahn.berlin) and ask them to change your ticket as you will otherwise no longer be able to present identification using the name still listed on your current ticket.

For further changes in IT systems, you will unfortunately need to contact the CMS yourself and request the changing your of your email address, library account, and any other HU services (cms-benutzerberatung@hu-berlin.de). Typically, students receive a new email address, while the old one is deactivated after three months. However, your old account alias for login will remain unchanged, and your deadname may still be accessible in some IT applications.

Alternatively, you may request a completely new HU account. In this case, a new account will be created and your old account will be locked and deleted after one month. Examination results and course registrations will be automatically transferred. However, you will need to take care of backing up your emails and HU Box data yourself. You will receive a new email address and will no longer be able to log in to Roundcube using your old account after one month. It is important that you do not immediately log in to your new Moodle account, but instead send an email to the Moodle support team (moodle-support@hu-berlin.de) requesting the transfer of your old Moodle data to the new account. Otherwise, you will lose all your previous course data.

What we find problematic

You probably realize by now just how complicated everything is regulated here. Moreover, the rules expose us to structural discrimination in many respects. Particularly at a time when lists for recording transgender individuals are being reintroduced, changing one’s name and gender entry under the SBGG is no longer an option for many, due to the current political climate. Other factors—such as one’s residence status or the legal situation in the country where one holds citizenship—can also serve as decisive barriers. Given this context, it should be self-evident that name and gender entries should be fully changeable within the university system based solely on a simple self-declaration. We demand that university leadership protect students from discrimination and violence, regardless of whether it originates from the state, teaching staff, or fellow students. The current complex system, which leads to forced outings at many points, fails to meet this responsibility. Furthermore, it should not fall to individual students to chase down every single office in order to harmonize their name and gender entry across the entire system. We demand that the enrollment office take responsibility—starting from the student’s (self-)declaration—to inform all relevant offices and thereby ensure that changes are implemented uniformly and simply. We do not have the time, especially with a full-time study load, to navigate the opaque web of IT systems and regulations just to finally have our fundamental rights recognized.

geändert:21.04.26, 13:43