Before we go into more detail about the possibilities, residence permits, registration, application and other requirements foreigners have to fulfil in order to be able to study at one of Munich’s universities, colleges and other institutions of higher education in one of our following posts about studying in Munich, here are some interesting facts about higher education in the Bavarian capital. The number of students, the women/men ratio, which countries most of the foreign students come from, etc.
There are over 115,000 students studying at Munich’s three universities, colleges and other institutions of higher education at the Bavarian capital. The three universities are the Ludwig Maximilians University, the Technical University of Munich and the Bundeswehr University. Roughly 50,000 (30,000 female and 20,000 male) students study at the Ludwig Maximilians University (LMU), the Technical University Munich (TUM) is the choice of some 39,000 students (26,000 male and 13,000 female students).
In addition to the two renowned universities, which are both ranked within the Top 20 of the Times Higher Education World University Rankings, there is the Academy of Fine Arts and the College for Television and Film, the Bundeswehr University and a number of private and state accredited institutions. There are very few subjects that are not taught in Munich, some 200 are being taught at the LMU and 165 at the TUM. According to data from 2013/14 over 8,000 are studying business, 7,000 study medicine, there are some 5,000 students studying machine engineering, while over 4,000 are studying electrical engineering and law respectively. The share of female students in the fields of veterinary medicine, social science and tourism is over 80%, while men mostly keep to themselves in the fields of automotive engineering, brewing and mechatronics.
By nationality, the most foreign students in Munich are Chinese (over 1,700) followed by neighbouring Austrians (over 1,500), Italians and Turks (some 1,100 respectively). The foreign students come from over 130 countries. The student population from Madagascar, Togo and Guatemala is below 10 respectively.
40 years ago, there were only 54,000 higher education students, today there are over double as many. During the same time, the share of female students rose 30% of all students to the present 47% of all students.
All universities are linked with colleges in Germany and abroad, which enables both interesting research collaborations and study exchanges with other countries. Munich is known for this particular mixture of “laptop and lederhosen” where high-tech and tradition exist side by side, and it is this that also makes studying in Munich more attractive. Large corporations such as BMW, Siemens and Linde characterise this city just as much as Oktoberfest and the alternative cultural festival Tollwood. The city offers a colourful nightlife scene and a creative cultural life.
