TU Chemnitz

Chemnitz University of Technology

Technische Universität Chemnitz
Type	Public
Established	1836
Budget	€ 178.1 million
Chancellor	Eberhard Alles
President	Gerd Strohmeier
Academic staff	1,468
Administrative staff	808
Students	11,406
Location	Chemnitz, Saxony, Germany
Website	www.tu-chemnitz.de

Chemnitz University of Technology is located in the town of Chemnitz in Germany. With over 10000 students it is the third largest university in Saxony and around 750 international students from 100 universities all over the world are enrolled each year. It was founded in 1836 as Royal Mercantile College ("Königliche Gewerbeschule") and became a technical university in 1986. Situated in the centre of the 'Wissenschaftsregion' ('science region') Chemnitz, Technische Universität (TU) Chemnitz hosts about 11,000 students from 75 countries. With approximately 2,000 employees in science, engineering and management, TU Chemnitz counts among the most important employers in the region. Today, TU Chemnitz stands for distinctively-profiled and outstanding research. Within the key research areas 'Energy-efficient Production Processes', 'Smart Systems and Materials' and 'Human Factors in Technology' solutions for the challenges of tomorrow are developed. The main issues regarding economic and social developments are influenced by mega trends such as globalization, demographic change and the availability of resources. The profile of TU Chemnitz is characterized by the interaction of the key research areas mentioned above and has generated a unique constellation of competencies across eight faculties. Thanks to this constellation, Chemnitz develops into an internationally visible research hub for future value creation processes.

The tradition of science in this region goes back to the 16th century when Georg Agricola (1494-1555), a famous German scholar of minerals, served as the city's mayor. In 1836 the Royal Mercantile College was established as a scientific base to support the industrial revolution. In 1882 more than 1,000 students registered at the college. Modern scientific areas like electrical engineering were included in the curriculum. These developments made it possible for the institution to become a Royal Technical Academy ("Königliche Gewerbeakademie"). This academy played a major role in helping Chemnitz to become one of the industrial centers at the beginning of the 20th century. At this time Chemnitz had the highest number of patent registrations in the whole of Germany and hence also in the whole world.

The city of Chemnitz and the Technical Academy was heavily damaged during the World War II. In the German Democratic Republic era, after some time of adaptation to the new conditions, the status of a Technical College ("Technische Hochschule") was awarded in 1963. At the end of the 1960s the College was composed of faculties for Mathematics,ett Natural Sciences, Engineering and Humanities. With the rising number of students the institution became an official University of Technology in 1986.