Five new Universities of Excellence

Germany expands its top-tier research

Five new locations are joining the top funding league of Germany’s higher education landscape. From 2027, a total of 15 universities and university alliances will hold the title of “University of Excellence”.

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A profile of the new locations of excellence

Five new locations of excellence were named by the Joint Science Conference (GWK) in early October 2026: the universities of Freiburg, Jena and Cologne, as well as two university alliances. From 2027, a total of 15 universities and alliances will be part of Germany’s excellence funding program and will therefore also be in the particular focus of targeted higher education marketing. Below, we introduce each of the new locations of excellence and look at their research profiles, student numbers and position in Germany’s higher education landscape.

Ruhr Innovation Lab alliance
By joining forces, RUB and TU Dortmund bring together two universities in the Ruhr region: Ruhr University Bochum, founded in 1962, has around 38,900 students and is one of the pioneers of Germany’s large research universities established in the post-war era. Bochum has gained particular international recognition for its IT security research: with the CASA Cluster of Excellence, the university is one of Europe’s leading centers for cybersecurity.
Technische Universität Dortmund, founded in 1968, has around 30,000 students and performs particularly well in the WiWo ranking in industrial engineering, mechanical engineering and electrical engineering. Dortmund is also considered one of Germany’s centers for logistics research, not least because of its close ties to the Fraunhofer Institute for Material Flow and Logistics. Together, the partners position the “Ruhr Innovation Lab” as a response to the region’s structural transformation: from heavy industry to a high-tech hub.

Rhine-Main Universities alliance
Three universities secured Excellence status as an alliance: TU Darmstadt, Goethe University Frankfurt and Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz. TU Darmstadt (founded in 1877, around 24,000 students) is considered one of Germany’s strongest research universities of technology and ranks among the top 10 in five subject areas in the WiWo ranking. As a member of the TU9 alliance of Germany’s leading universities of technology, Darmstadt is also among the country’s leaders in IT security research.
Goethe University Frankfurt (founded in 1914, around 41,000 students) stands out particularly in economics and law and benefits from its immediate proximity to Frankfurt’s financial center, including through the renowned House of Finance.
Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz rounds out the alliance as a traditional, comprehensive university with a broad range of disciplines and has recently established itself as a life sciences hub, not least thanks to its proximity to Mainz-based biotech company BioNTech. Together, the three universities form one of Germany’s largest university clusters.

University of Freiburg
Albert Ludwig University of Freiburg, founded in 1457, is one of Germany’s oldest and most renowned universities. It ranks among the top institutions in almost all major university rankings and is particularly strong in the life sciences, natural sciences and law. Freiburg also has international standing in microsystems engineering, including through the Institute for Microsystem Technology (IMTEK), as well as in environmental and forestry sciences—a research focus closely linked to its location on the edge of the Black Forest. The University Medical Center Freiburg is also one of Germany’s largest and highest-performing university hospitals. The university town of Freiburg’s location on the edge of the Black Forest also makes it one of the most popular places to study in southwest Germany.

Friedrich Schiller University Jena
Founded in 1558, the University of Jena combines a long humanist tradition—its namesake is the poet and thinker Friedrich Schiller—with outstanding research strengths in the natural sciences, particularly optics and photonics, a field in which the city of Jena has traditionally played a leading role in Germany. This strength is closely linked to the city’s industrial history: companies such as Carl Zeiss and Schott continue to shape Jena as a photonics hub. With around 16,500 students, the University of Jena is considerably more compact than the other new locations of excellence, but stands out for its particularly favorable student-to-staff ratios. The university has also made an international name for itself in microbiology and infectious disease research. It is regarded as Thuringia’s most important scientific engine.

University of Cologne
With around 47,000 students and a founding date of 1388, the University of Cologne is Germany’s second-oldest university after Heidelberg. It ranks among the top 10 in business information systems, business administration, economics and law in the WiWo ranking, and has traditionally been one of the country’s leading institutions for economics and law. The Faculty of Management, Economics and Social Sciences (WiSo Faculty) is one of the largest of its kind in Europe and plays a major role in shaping the university’s profile in economics. The University Hospital Cologne is also one of Germany’s largest and strongest medical research centers. At the Cologne higher education hub, the University of Cologne thus offers an exceptionally broad range of disciplines—from economics and medicine to the humanities.

These ten locations have already held University of Excellence status for some time

Ten Universities of Excellence have successfully passed the Excellence Strategy’s evaluation process: they will retain their status and receive funding for a further seven years from 2027. These locations have been part of Germany’s top-tier research landscape for years. Below, we introduce each of them, covering their history, student numbers and position in national and international rankings.

RWTH Aachen University
Founded in 1870, it now has around 47,300 students. According to the WiWo ranking, RWTH Aachen is among the top 10 universities in six subject areas, from computer science and industrial engineering to electrical engineering. As one of Europe’s largest universities of technology, it is firmly established in the international THE ranking (92nd place).

Berlin University Alliance
Three long-established Berlin universities, one shared Excellence status: Humboldt University (founded in 1810) and Technische Universität Berlin (founded in 1879) represent the Prussian university tradition, while Freie Universität Berlin was established in 1948 in West Berlin as a democratic alternative. Together, the three universities have over 108,000 students and cover virtually the entire range of disciplines, from engineering and law to computer science, with multiple top-10 placements in the WiWo ranking.

University of Bonn
Founded in 1818, the University of Bonn has around 36,600 students and is one of Germany’s largest universities. It ranks 89th worldwide in the THE ranking and is among the top 10 in economics and law in the WiWo ranking.

Technische Universität Dresden
Founded in 1828, TU Dresden now has around 29,300 students and is one of the strongest research universities of technology in eastern Germany. According to the WiWo ranking, it is among the top 10 in five subject areas, from business information systems to electrical engineering, and is closely integrated with the “Silicon Saxony” high-tech hub.

University of Hamburg
Founded in 1919, the University of Hamburg has around 41,800 students and is one of Germany’s largest universities. It ranks 132nd in the THE ranking and has top-10 placements in business information systems, business administration, economics and the natural sciences in the WiWo ranking.

Heidelberg University
Founded in 1386, Heidelberg University is Germany’s oldest university. With around 29,500 students and 47th place in the THE ranking (3rd nationally), it is among Germany’s most internationally visible universities, with particular strengths in law and the natural sciences.

Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)
Established from the Karlsruhe Polytechnic, founded in 1825, KIT now has around 21,800 students. It ranks among the top 10 in computer science, industrial engineering, mechanical engineering and electrical engineering in the WiWo ranking, and is ranked 166th internationally in the THE ranking.

Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (LMU)
Founded in 1472, it is one of Germany’s largest and most renowned universities, with around 53,600 students. It ranks 34th worldwide in the THE ranking (2nd nationally) and stands out in the WiWo ranking, including with first place in business administration, economics and law.

Technical University of Munich (TUM)
Founded in 1868, TU Munich has around 54,000 students and is the larger of Munich’s two Universities of Excellence. TUM ranks 27th internationally in the THE ranking (1st nationally) and has taken first place multiple times in the WiWo ranking, including in business information systems, mechanical engineering and electrical engineering.

Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen
Founded in 1477, Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen has around 28,200 students and is one of Baden-Württemberg’s most historic universities. It ranks 100th in the THE ranking and is known for its research strengths in the humanities and life sciences.