How many higher education institutions are there in Germany?
According to the German Federal Statistical Office, there were 428 higher education institutions in Germany as of the winter semester 2023/24. Of these, 215 are universities of applied sciences (UAS) , 109 full universities, 52 art and music colleges, 30 administrative colleges and 16 theological colleges. Colleges of education (teacher training), of which there are six, only exist in the federal state of Baden-Wuerttemberg.
Universities account for the majority of students (57.9 per cent), but more than a third (37.8 per cent) of students are now enrolled at universities of applied sciences. On average, just under 15,000 students are enrolled at a university, and an average of just over 5,000 at a university of applied sciences. The smallest type of university in terms of student numbers is the theological colleges with an average of 136 students (see also German Federal Statistical Office).
How many university locations are there in Germany?
There are almost 700 university locations (campuses) in Germany (i.e. main and secondary locations of universities) in about 300 cities and municipalities. In its higher education statistics for the winter semester 2023/24, the German Federal Statistical Office shows student numbers for a total of 684 locations of German higher education institutions.
The majority (418 of 684 locations, 61.1 %) of these higher education locations are locations of universities of applied sciences (UAS). In addition, there are 129 locations of full universities, 59 locations of administrative colleges, 56 locations of art and music colleges, 16 locations of theological colleges and 6 locations of teacher education colleges. 405 of the 684 locations are publicly funded, 234 privately and 45 churchly funded.
The following map provides an overview of German university locations and shows the diversity of the German higher education landscape. The size of the presentation is based on the number of students at the location, and the different types of universities are also differentiated by colour. It is clear that there are a particularly large number of locations in the conurbations, such as the Ruhr area or the Rhine-Main area, as well as in the large cities. However, universities and universities of applied sciences in particular can be found throughout Germany.
Which universities in Germany have the most students?
In the winter semester 2023/24, the IU Internationale Hochschule had the most students in Germany with over 100,000 students. This is followed by the FernUniversität in Hagen, the TU München (Munich), the LMU München (Munich), the Universität zu Köln (Cologne) and the FOM Hochschule für Ökonomie und Management.
Most IU students (96,219) are attributed to the headquarters in Erfurt (Thuringia), as can be seen in the map above. The majority of these students are distance learning students, who are generally assigned to the headquarters of the respective university by the Federal Statistical Office. The university with the second most students, the FernUniversität in Hagen, also focuses on distance learning. Only then do the three largest state universities in presence follow: the Technische Universität München, the LMU München and the Universität zu Köln. The private, state-recognised FOM with a focus on part-time courses of study concludes the top 6 universities with the most students. With the exception of the Duale Hochschule Baden-Württemberg (Cooperative state university), the other universities in the top 20 are all state-funded, full universities, which are mainly located in large cities and metropolitan areas.
The following table provides an overview of higher education institutions in Germany, ordered by the number of students in the winter semester 2023/24. Different locations/campuses of a university are combined.