Law, Medicine, Science, Arts, Education, Pharmacy, Economics and Administration, Informatics, Social Studies, Sports Studies
Masaryk University was founded on 28 January 1919 with four faculties: Law, Medicine, Science and Arts. It stands in Brno, the second city of the Czech Republic, and it is the second largest university in the country. It was renamed Jan Evangelista Purkyně University in 1960 and regained its original name in 1990.
The university counts 35,115 students and about 2,200 academic staff. The administrative staff numbers 3,000. International students numbered more than 1,000 in the academic year 2012 to 2013, and the source does not give a percentage. The alumni exceed 170,000 graduates since 1922. The offer includes more than 200 bachelor programmes, more than 290 master programmes and more than 130 doctoral programmes, some of them taught in English or in German.
The university has ten faculties. Law, Medicine, Science and Arts date from 1919. Education followed in 1946 and Pharmacy in 1952, although Pharmacy closed in 1960 and reopened in 2020. Economics and Administration was created in 1991, Informatics in 1994, Social Studies in 1998 and Sports Studies in 2002. The late creation of Informatics and Social Studies shows how the university expanded after the political changes of 1989.
The list of alumni includes politicians, scientists and artists. Petr Fiala, born in 1964, and Petr Nečas are former prime ministers of the Czech Republic, and Bohuslav Sobotka, born in 1971, also served as prime minister. The linguist and literary theorist Roman Jakobson, who lived from 1896 to 1982, the mathematician Eduard Čech, from 1893 to 1960, the cardinal and theologian Tomáš Špidlík, and the film director František Vláčil also belong to the list.
For a prospective student, the main features are the wide range of faculties, the student city of Brno and a number of programmes taught in English. Applicants should check the official pages for the entry conditions. Fees depend on the language of study. Check the current tariff.
Brno is a student city with a lively cultural life, good transport to Prague and Vienna and lower living costs than the capital. The university also has a medical school and a faculty of pharmacy, which makes it attractive for health programmes. Applicants should read the official pages for the programmes taught in English, the entrance tests and the dates for applications.
Domains taught:
Chemistry, Data Analytics, Life Sciences, Mathematics, Physics, Software Engineering, Statistics
Diplomas*:
Bachelor, Doctor, Master
Status:
Public
Partnerships:
Ten faculties in Brno, second largest university in the Czech Republic.
Research:
Medicine, science, informatics, social studies, law, arts and pharmacy.
Famous Alumnis:
Petr Fiala, Petr Nečas, Bohuslav Sobotka, Roman Jakobson, Eduard Čech, Tomáš Špidlík, František Vláčil
International recognition**:
Number of staff***:
5200
Current students***:
35115
Foreign students***:
N/A%
Cumulative former students***:
170000
Pros
Second largest university in the Czech Republic, ten faculties, more than 170,000 alumni, programmes in English.
Cons
Large institution, city outside Prague, teaching mainly in Czech for many programmes.
Best For
Students looking for a large comprehensive Czech university in Brno, with a strong informatics and science profile.
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Most Similar Schools Locally
Among national alternatives, Charles University stands out for its focus on chemistry, physics and mathematics, and it is also a public institution, and teaches at the same levels, namely bachelor's, master's and doctoral.
Most Similar Schools Abroad
For a study option in Hungary with a comparable spread of chemistry, physics and mathematics, University of Szeged is the reference point: it covers microbiology and genetics and optics as well, and is smaller, enrolling about 22,693 students against roughly 35,115 here.
Beyond national borders, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz stands out as a comparable school for chemistry, physics and mathematics; it teaches at the same levels, namely bachelor's, master's and doctoral, and covers microbiology and genetics as well.
Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, based in Germany, is built around chemistry, statistics and physics much like this university, and it runs the same bachelor's, master's and doctoral programmes, and covers finance and microbiology and genetics as well.
For chemistry, statistics and physics outside the home country, Université Paris Cité in France is a natural reference; it is also a public institution, and teaches at the same levels, namely bachelor's, master's and doctoral.
In Spain, University of Barcelona teaches much the same core subjects, chemistry, physics and mathematics, and it covers finance and microbiology and genetics as well, and is larger, enrolling about 62,995 students against roughly 35,115 here.
*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 Masaryk University?
In Brno, Czech Republic.
When was it founded?
On 28 January 1919.
Which were the first faculties?
Law, Medicine, Science and Arts.
When did it regain its original name?
In 1990.
How many faculties does it have?
Ten.
How many students does it have?
35,115.
How many alumni does it have?
More than 170,000.
When was the Faculty of Informatics created?
In 1994.
Which former prime ministers studied there?
Petr Fiala, Petr Nečas and Bohuslav Sobotka.
What does it cost?
Fees depend on the language of study. Check the current tariff.
Biology, Chemistry, 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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