HGAS is the abbreviation for Hochschulgruppe ausländischer Studenten an der C.v.O. University of Oldenburg.

The university group was founded one year after the foundation of the University of Oldenburg as a small foreign group that met every Wednesday of the month. In this group, foreign students from the University of Oldenburg got to know each other and talked about their problems. Together they tried to solve existing problems. In 1976, the number of foreign students was 33.

In 1978, when there were about 90 foreign students at the University of Oldenburg, the group became more organised and committed by organising several events (political, cultural). This year, the group was able to make appointments to look after foreign fellow students due to new spatial conditions. The group helped fellow foreign students to find rooms, communicate with other Germans and fellow foreign students, obtain any one-off grants provided by the university, and deal with the authorities at all offices.

In 1980, the group was recognised as a university group and the University Group of Foreign Students (HGAS) saw itself as the interest group of all foreign students on a study-related level. The interests of the foreign students were always represented by two elected representatives, who were elected once a year and were accountable to the HGAS.

In 1982, the HGAS submitted a proposal to the student parliament to recognise the HGAS as an organ of the student body at the C.v.O. Uni Ol.

After long and hard arguments with the MSB and SHB, who, despite the admission of the Uni-VV of 6.5.1982, opposed the implementation of the proposal, HGAS succeeded in having itself recognised as an organ of the student body (StuPa 27.04.1983).

HGAS is a very heterogeneous group, both politically and culturally.

Political groups can be active within HGAS if they have an anti-fascist stance.

Today, HAGS operates as an organ of the student body of the C.v.O. Uni Ol. It is represented by a council consisting of five foreign fellow students. These are elected once a year, parallel to StuPa elections, in a convened HGAS general meeting and can be recalled at any time in a properly convened general meeting requested by at least 10% of the members of the HGAS with a simple majority of the votes cast.