The Federal City Full of Energy

The University of Bonn is one of 11 Universities of Excellence in Germany and also ranked among the top univerities in the world (rank 112, Times Higher Education Ranking 2022). Proportionately we have nearly 14 percent foreign students from 141 countries (summer semester 2021), it means in effect every seventh student comes from abroad! That is not a coincidence, the University of Bonn offers international students a wide range of education and training possibilities, in a high quality economic region and comfortable environment for life and living.

Bonn is a popular place of study and, despite its importance as a federal city, has remained a charming university town. It is a city where studying and living are equally easy. The central position of the Main Building of the university draws students again and again to the city centre.

Almost 60% of students cycle to the city, and an extensive network of cycle paths reflects this trend. Students in Bonn are advised to make do without a car because parking places are difficult to come by. Doing without a car is actually made easy for students. According to an agreement negotiated between the student body and the regional transport authority, every student is bound through payment of student welfare contribution (Sozialbeitrag) to purchase a reasonably priced semester ticket, which entitles them to use of public transport in Bonn and the state of North Rhineland-Westfalia!

The Institute for Geosciences alone stands out as a very professional and internationally renowned institution! The Institute has a large international staff who are experienced in all branches of the Geosciences in Germany and abroad. The institute offers additional field-trips and mapping expedition around the globe and students are encouraged to take part. The institute even houses the Goldfuß Museum for Paleontology as well as the Mineralogisches Museum in the Poppelsdorfer Palace.

The city of Bonn itself is even positioned in an incredibly interesting geologic area. The Rheinisches Schiefergebirge offers hundreds of beautiful hiking tours, with spectacular sedimentary and tectonic structures to examine! The Eifel as well as the Ruhr area are full of fossil lagerstätte, and the Siebengebirge as well as the Vulkaneifel are comprised of volcanic rocks and mineral deposits.

Additionally, Bonn sports a very interesting history, consisting of Neanderthals, Celts, Romans, Vikings, being the home of Haribo, the United Nations, and having the titel of being the former capitol of Western Germany. The city as well as the University have also housed some brilliant artists and scientists such as Beethoven, Wolfgang Paul, Friedrich Nietzsche, Karl Marx, Heinrich Heine, Kondrad Adenauer and many more.