History
Kiel University has an eventful history spanning more than 350 years. It started off as a state school, overcame upheaval and crises, finally developing into a successful international research centre.
Education
Kiel University is dedicated to research-based teaching and learning. Therefore, the development of new teaching approaches is evolving constantly at the interfaces between research from the different scientific disciplines. Students from all over the world benefit from this: research results are quickly integrated into programme curricula and our academic staff is trained in-state-of-the-art teaching methods.
Research
The CAU is Schleswig-Holstein’s only fully-fledged university with a major focus on research. Over time, four dynamic priority research areas have systematically developed which are based on strong disciplines interacting together - Marine Science, Life Science, Societal and Cultural Change, and Nano Surface & Interface Science. Each individual research area makes a substantial contribution towards dealing with at least one of the grand challenges of our time.
Career
The CAU is embedded in an international network of scientific, cultural, political and economic contacts and partnerships. This way, the University became a vibrant member of the scientific community and the society, which provide important impulses for CAU's productive development in return.
University of Kiel Key Statistics & Highlights
- #201 Ranking
- 32 Scholarships
- 1,233 Academic Staff
- 27,750 Students
- 2,498 Students (int'l)
- 14,708 Students (female)
- Public Institution Type
University of Kiel Overview
University of Kiel Scholarships
University of Kiel Scholarships
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University of Kiel Rankings
Study Portals Meta Ranking
Studyportals ranking look at the scores of the most used ranking systems and present you with one number of how well this University performs.
Academic Ranking of World Universities
By Shanghai Jiao Tong University
The university hasn’t moved up or down in the rankings over the past year.
ARWU World University rankings is the first world university ranking. It ranks the world's top 1000 colleges and universities based on objective indicator. They look at the number of award-winning (Fields Medals and Nobel Prize) scientists who are located there, how much of their research is cited and referenced around the world, and how much they've contributed to different academic fields. After calculating and comparing these criteria, ARWU ranks the universities accordingly.
3 year trend Academic Ranking of World Universities
| 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| 201 | 201 | 201 |
We don’t have enough recent ranking data to show a 3-year trend for this university.
World University Rankings
By Times Higher Education
Dropped 50 places compared to 2025
World University Rankings is a vital resource that provides the definitive list of the world's best universities. They look at how often they're producing new ideas, what their reputation is around the world, and how much they're contributing to science and academic fields. After calculating and comparing these criteria, THE ranks the universities accordingly.
3 year trend World University Rankings
| 2024 | 2025 | 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| 301 | 301 | 351 |
We don’t have enough recent ranking data to show a 3-year trend for this university.
QS World University Rankings
By TopUniversities
Dropped 7 places compared to 2025
QS World University Rankings is one of the top international rankings measuring the popularity and performance of universities all over the world. They measure university reputation based on the impressions of higher education experts, companies who hire graduates, and teaching quality. QS also considers the ratio of international teachers and students present at universities, as well as the times research papers were mentioned by researchers. After calculating and comparing these criteria, QS ranks the universities accordingly.
3 year trend QS World University Rankings
| 2024 | 2025 | 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| 530 | 611 | 618 |
We don’t have enough recent ranking data to show a 3-year trend for this university.
Best Global Universities Rankings
By U.S. News & World Report
This university doesn’t have a ranking for 2026 yet. Rankings are updated yearly, so check back later for the latest info.
Best Global Universities Rankings by U.S. News & World Report presents all the top universities from the U.S. and 60 other countries around the world. They measure the rate of students going to their second year of studies, as well as the rate of students who graduate. It also asks university representatives on the performance of universities, and evaluates university resources, teacher salaries, graduation rates, student academic achievements and satisfaction. After calculating and comparing these criteria, U.S. News ranks the top international universities accordingly.
3 year trend Best Global Universities Rankings
| 2024 | 2025 | 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| 323 | - | - |
We don’t have enough recent ranking data to show a 3-year trend for this university.
Student services
- The Central Office for Gender Equality, Diversity and Family represents the areas of equality, mentoring, diversity, the Family Service and the Welcome Service for new appointees in particular.
- Internal Auditing supports the University Board in carrying out its tasks, by process-independent and objective auditing activities and advisory services.
Housing services
The International Center accepts applications only from the following students:
- participants of the Erasmus exchange programme
- stipend holders of Kiel's partner universities (England, France, USA, Poland, Russia, Japan, and Korea)
- stipend holders of the City of Kiel (Stadt Kiel - Stipendien)
- DNSZ - stipend holders
- DAAD students and scholars of the Nordelbische Kirche
The rent in the various dormitories is currently € 190,00 to € 230,00 per month.
Library services
The Institute for Science Education's library in Kiel is a specialized scientific reference library. At present, the library comprises ca. 35,000 media units, 50 e-books and it also subscribes to 110 scholarly journals. Momentarily the e-book stock is being widely extended.
Medical services
You can chose between private and statutory (public) health insurance carriers and companies in Germany. Up until you turn 30 years of age (or up to the 14th full study semester) you must essentially be insured by a statutory health insurance carrier. Only in exceptions will you be allowed to take out private insurance. Please check this with the International Center.
Campus life
A new medical research and teaching campus for Kiel University is being constructed along Feldstraße. It will be formed out of three new research buildings, a new study centre and refurbished buildings at the area of the University Hospital Schleswig-Holstein (UKSH).
Sports facilities
You are looking for an opportunity to discover new kinds of sports, to exercise your favorite kind of sports or to actively balance your studies?University Sports of Kiel University is the right place for you. A wide-ranging offer of courses, the free sports and games offer, but also the close proximity of our sports facilites as well as our close coopereation with the Fitness Center FiZ, located at Olshausenstr. 71, provide you with a maximum of sporting variety and possibilities for socializing. On the following pages, you can find all there is to know about our institution and our offer.
University of Kiel Campus Locations
University of Kiel Student Reviews & Awards
Based on 16 reviews
- 5 Star 6 Reviews
- 4 Star 8 Reviews
- 3 Star 0 Reviews
- 2 Star 1 Review
- 1 Star 1 Review
Good University
Good curriculum and studying environment. Helpful faculty and good research facilities.
Quality Education
CAU Kiel is a university that has a great teaching standard. You learn both theoretically and practically as there are chances of practical learning at least in my field of study. Studying at CAU can be a bit overwhelming but it shapes you to be able to deal with the real world.
Decent but not recommended
CAU is one of the biggest universities in Nothern Germany and is highly commendable for Marine-related and technical majors. However, the social sciences programs are sorely lacking. Even on campus, the language barrier was tough to overcome. Support systems for international students are very minimal though the existing staffs are already overworked to the bone.