Leibniz Universität Hannover opened in 1831 as the Höhere Gewerbeschule, a higher vocational school. In 1879 it moved into the Welfenschloss, the former Guelph palace in Hannover, which had been converted for teaching. The institution was called Polytechnische Schule from 1847 and Königliche Technische Hochschule from 1879.
It became the Technische Universität Hannover in 1968, after a faculty of humanities and political science was added. A further renaming to Universität Hannover followed in 1978, and in 2006 it adopted the name Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Universität Hannover.
The university now has nine faculties: Architecture and Landscape Sciences, Civil Engineering and Geodetic Science, Economics and Management, Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Humanities, Law, Mathematics and Physics, Mechanical Engineering, and Natural Sciences. About 27,000 students were enrolled in the winter semester 2023/24. Its main site is at Welfengarten, and it is a member of the TU9 group of German universities of technology. The long sequence of names, from a vocational school to a technical university and then a general university, mirrors the way the curriculum grew from technical trades into engineering, natural sciences, law, humanities and economics.
Domains taught:
Aerospace, AI and Machine Learning, Astroscience, Automation, Bioengineering, Bioinformatics, Chemistry, Civil Engineering, Computer Vision, Data Analytics, Ecology and Sustainability, Electrical and Electronics, Engineering, Fluid Dynamics, Geotechnics, Industrial Design, Life Sciences, Manufacturing, Materials, Mathematics, Mechanical Engineering, Metrology, Nanotechnologies, Optics, Physics, Process Control, Project Management, Robotics, Signal Processing, Software Engineering, Statistics, Structural Engineering, Telecommunications, Thermodynamics, Transportations
Diplomas*:
Bachelor, Doctor, Master
Status:
Public
Partnerships:
Member of TU9, CESAER, EUA. Regional and international research collaborations.
Research:
Production Technology & Robotics, Optical Technologies & Quantum Engineering, Water Resources & Environmental Systems, Biomedical Engineering.
Famous Alumnis:
Wilhelm Busch, Theodor Lessing
International recognition**:
Number of staff***:
4000
Current students***:
28000
Foreign students***:
10%
Cumulative former students***:
N/A
Pros
Member of TU9, strong engineering programs, good research in specific areas like production technology and optics.
Cons
Comprehensive university with diverse faculties, engineering is one part.
Best For
TU9 university with strong programs in mechanical, civil, and electrical engineering.
Purdue University, West Lafayette in the United States has Aerospace Engineering, Engineering and Agriculture.
Polytechnique Montréal in Canada is an engineering school covering all engineering disciplines and Aerospace Engineering.
*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
When was the university established?
It started in 1831 as a higher vocational school, the Höhere Gewerbeschule. It was renamed Technische Universität Hannover in 1968.
What were its earlier names?
The names included Polytechnische Schule (1847), Königliche Technische Hochschule (1879), Technische Universität Hannover (1968), Universität Hannover (1978) and, since 2006, Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Universität Hannover.
Which faculties does it have?
There are nine: architecture and landscape sciences, civil engineering and geodetic science, economics and management, electrical engineering and computer science, humanities, law, mathematics and physics, mechanical engineering, and natural sciences. This combines a technical core with law and humanities.
What is the Welfenschloss?
It is the former Guelph palace that became the university's main building in 1879 after conversion for teaching.
How many students study at Leibniz Universität Hannover?
About 27,000 in the winter semester 2023/24. It is one of the larger higher education institutions in Lower Saxony.
Which Nobel laureates are linked to the university?
Lists of associated laureates include Friedrich Bergius (Chemistry, 1931), J. Hans D. Jensen (Physics, 1963) and Gerhard Ertl (Chemistry, 2007).
Where can fees and admission information be found?
The university's central student advisory pages give entry requirements, deadlines and language rules by degree programme.
*: 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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