Engineering, Natural Sciences, Medicine, Humanities, Social Sciences, Forestry
Dresden University of Technology traces its origin to the Technische Bildungsanstalt, founded in Dresden in 1828. It became the Royal Saxon Polytechnic Institute in 1871 and the Royal Saxon Technical College in 1890. It received university status and its present name in 1961. It is known in Germany as TU Dresden.
The main campus lies south of the centre of Dresden, bordered by Nöthnitzer Straße, Fritz-Förster-Platz and Münchner Platz. The Carl Gustav Carus Faculty of Medicine has its own campus east of the centre, near the Elbe, in the Johannstadt district. The forestry faculty is in Tharandt.
About 29,000 students were enrolled in 2024. Some 20 percent of them were international students from 128 countries, and in the 2022 and 2023 cohort 17 percent, or 3,442 students, came from other countries. The university offers 119 degree programmes, 26 of them taught in English, while most courses are in German. Seventeen faculties are grouped in five schools.
TU Dresden has been a University of Excellence since 2012, a status confirmed in 2019 and 2026. From January 2026 five Clusters of Excellence receive funding: CeTI on the tactile internet, ct.qmat on complexity and topology in quantum matter, PoL on the physics of life, CARE on medical technology and REC2 on recycling-oriented materials.
Walter Kohn, who received the 1998 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, and Günter Blobel, who received the 1999 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, are among the honorary figures of the university. Konrad Zuse, a civil engineer and computer scientist who built the first programmable computer, is among its notable people. Tuition fees are not charged for most students in Saxony, with a semester contribution instead. Check the current tariff. Teaching is mainly in German.
The faculties are grouped in five schools, and the Carl Gustav Carus Faculty of Medicine and the forestry faculty at Tharandt give this technical university a medical and a forestry profile. Other names linked to the university include Richard Socher, the former United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan and the writer and president Václav Havel, although the sources mix honorary figures, professors and alumni.
Domains taught:
Chemistry, Civil Engineering, Electrical and Electronics, Engineering, Life Sciences, Materials, Mathematics, Physics, Software Engineering
Diplomas*:
Bachelor, Doctor, Master
Status:
Public
Partnerships:
DRESDEN-concept alliance, Carl Gustav Carus Faculty of Medicine, forestry faculty in Tharandt, and five Clusters of Excellence funded from 2026.
Research:
Tactile internet, complexity and topology in quantum matter, physics of life, medical technology and recycling-oriented materials in five Clusters of Excellence.
Famous Alumnis:
Walter Kohn, Günter Blobel, Konrad Zuse, Richard Socher, Kofi Annan, Václav Havel
International recognition**:
Number of staff***:
N/A
Current students***:
29000
Foreign students***:
20%
Cumulative former students***:
N/A
Pros
German University of Excellence, strong engineering and natural sciences, 26 programmes taught in English, 20 percent international students.
Cons
Most courses taught in German, large campus south of the centre, Saxony winters.
Best For
Students in engineering and the natural sciences who want a German University of Excellence with a large international community.
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Most Similar Schools Locally
Both schools build their programmes around chemistry, physics and mathematics, and Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz is the one to compare first within the country, since it has almost the same size, at about 32,000 students, and is also a public institution.
Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf shares the core fields of this institution, namely chemistry, physics and mathematics; it is slightly larger, at about 36,569 students against roughly 29,000 here, and is also a public institution.
Think of University of Regensburg when chemistry, physics and mathematics is the priority: it is also a public institution, and teaches at the same levels, namely bachelor's, master's and doctoral.
Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg follows much the same lines as this institution, with chemistry, physics and mathematics as common ground, and it teaches at the same levels, namely bachelor's, master's and doctoral, and covers astroscience and bioinformatics as well.
Technische Universität München works in much the same fields, chiefly civil engineering, chemistry and physics, and it teaches at the same levels, namely bachelor's, master's and doctoral, and covers aerospace and food science as well.
Most Similar Schools Abroad
Abroad, University of the Basque Country (Spain) covers chemistry, physics and mathematics in a comparable way, and it is also a public institution, and teaches at the same levels, namely bachelor's, master's and doctoral.
Students considering a move abroad can look at Henan University in China, where chemistry, physics and mathematics also form the core, and it also offers mba programmes, and is larger, enrolling about 50,000 students against roughly 29,000 here.
Seen from abroad, University of Belgrade (Serbia) is a close relative on subject matter, since civil engineering, chemistry and physics are central to both, and it teaches at the same levels, namely bachelor's, master's and doctoral, and covers mechanical engineering as well.
University of California, Santa Barbara offers an international parallel to this university, with chemistry, physics and mathematics as common ground; it is also a public institution, and runs the same bachelor's, master's and doctoral programmes.
If this institution is on your list for civil engineering, chemistry and physics, University of Tehran in Iran deserves a comparison, because it is slightly larger, at about 41,000 students against roughly 29,000 here, and is also a public institution.
*our own picks (our criteria: a mix between domains, diploma delivered, reputation and size), but obviously too many criteria for an apple-to-apple ranking.
FAQ
Where is TU Dresden?
South of the centre of Dresden, Saxony, Germany, with the medical faculty in Johannstadt.
When was it founded?
Its origin is the Technische Bildungsanstalt of 1828.
When did it become a university?
In 1961.
How many students does it have?
About 29,000 in 2024.
How international is it?
About 20 percent of the students came from 128 countries in 2024.
How many degree programmes does it offer?
119, of which 26 are taught in English.
How many faculties are there?
Seventeen, grouped into five schools.
What is its excellence status?
It has been a University of Excellence since 2012, confirmed in 2019 and 2026.
Where is the forestry faculty?
In Tharandt.
What does it cost?
Tuition fees are not charged for most students in Saxony, with a semester contribution instead. Check the current tariff.
Electronics, Engineering, Innovation, Physics, Research and Development
*: without any judgment of the quality, readers are strongly encouraged to check the official status of the exact diploma envisioned as many universities have a mix of recognized diplomas, not recognized, “co-delivered,” “equivalent to”, “some pathways” (…), can change over time, and can be named differently from one country to another.
**: international reputation: is based on some criteria that do not mean much in some domains or specialties (number of researchers, of scientific publications, on budget ….). Our approximate 1-4 scale:
known locally
known locally and internationally
is listed in some of the world university’s classifications
is listed among the 20 firsts in some of world university’s classifications
***: estimated numbers, based on online sources and/or feedbacks. The numbers can vary greatly depending on school organisation (ex.: school is part of a group, it employs internal staff or external consultants or has public staff without employing them …). Refer to all the links provided to have accurate and updated numbers.
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