RWTH Aachen
The RWTH Aachen is a large university located in Aachen (Germany). "RWTH" is the abbreviation of "Rheinisch-WestfÃÂälische Technische Hochschule". The official English translation of its name is "Aachen University of Technology (RWTH)".Its main focus are technological studies, especially electrical and mechanical engineering.
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| Motto: Zukunft beginnt bei uns – the future starts with us | |
| Rector | Burkhard Rauhut |
| School type | public |
| Religious affiliation | none |
| Founded | 1870 |
| Location | Aachen, Germany |
| Enrollment | 26,000 grad., 2400 post-grad. |
| Faculty | 7000 |
| Annual budget | 650 Mio. Euro |
| Campus surroundings | urban |
 Main Building of the RWTH Aachen | |
The RWTH is not a campus university. Instead, its buildings are spread over the whole city. There are two core areas (midtown and Melaten district), though not very distinct. The Main Building and the KÃÂármÃÂán Hall are 500 m away from the city centre with the Aachen Cathedral, the Audimax (biggest lecture hall) and the main refectory are 200 m farther.
The RWTH has external facilities in JÃÂülich and owns together with the University of Stuttgart a house in Kleinwalsertal in the Austrian Alps.
The RWTH Aachen is run by the federal state of
North Rhine-Westphalia. There are tuition fees only for long-term students and second studies. Almost all lectures
are given in German language, some graduate programs are offered in English.
The RWTH is divided into nine faculties:
Campus
Organisation
| 1 | mathematics, computer science, and natural sciences |
| 2 | architecture |
| 3 | civil engineering |
| 4 | mechanical engineering |
| 5 | mining, extractive metallurgy, and geology>geological sciences |
| 6 | electrical engineering |
| 7 | philosophy (actually all humanities) |
| 8 | economic sciences |
| 10 | medicines (including the Klinikum Aachen) |
The RWTH is a member of the IDEA League.
Today there are approx. 26,000 students at RWTH Aachen, graduate as well as post-graduate, however the number has been rather variable.
Approx. 16% of the students come from other countries, most of them from
Turkey, China, Morocco, Greece, Iran, and the Netherlands.
Annually 2000 students graduate and 800 receive their PhD.
There are 260 institutes with chairs, and 372 additional lecturers. The scientific staff consists of 6,600 people.
In 1870 the "Royal Rhine-Westphalian Polytechnical School of Aachen" was
founded. Its primary purpose was to educate engineers for the mining industry
in the Ruhr area. At its beginning there were 32 teachers and
223 students.
In 1880 it became a "Technical University" and was abbreviated "RWTH". In 1899 it was granted the right to bestow PhD's.
World War I was a serious setback for the university, but
between 1925 and 1932 was a period of prosperity and expansion. Previous
student numbers were reached again and many new facilities were built.
During the Third Reich (1933–1945) the RWTH was – like all
other institutions – assimilated by the Nazis:
The freedom of research and teaching was limited, leading lecturers were forced
to quit and many students had to leave the university. Due to the vicinity of
the borders to the Netherlands and Belgium the university was closed for a year
during World War II.
After the war the RWTH recovered and expanded very quickly. Some new faculties
have come into existence. Today, it's the only "Technische Hochschule" in
Germany. The RWTH Aachen, the TU Munich, and the TU Berlin are the three
biggest universities for technical studies in Germany.
Students
Faculty
History
External links