The Helmut Schmidt University (originally known as the University of the German Federal Armed Forces Hamburg), located in Hamburg, Germany, is a German educational establishment that was founded in 1973 at the initiative of the then-Federal Minister of Defence, Helmut Schmidt. Teaching first started in Autumn of 1973. It is one of two universities that were established by the Bundeswehr to train and educate its future and existing officers. In general, it is accessible only to officers and officer candidates of the Bundeswehr, hence its original name. However, since it started teaching, there have been cooperation agreements with allied countries, on the basis of which a handful of selected officers from these states have been able to study in Hamburg. Since 2002 there has been a small number of civilian students at the university. A prerequisite for studying as a civilian at the Helmut Schmidt University is a business scholarship. These scholarships are usually awarded by foundations with close relationships to industry – thus, these students are at least indirectly being supported by their future employer, usually large companies.