Tubingen University

University of Tubingen
Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen
Motto	Attempto!
Motto in English	I dare!
Established	1477
Type	Public
Rector	Bernd Engler
Admin. staff	~ 10,000 (including hospital staff)
Students	24,473 (11/2009)
Location	Tübingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany
Campus	Urban
Website	www.uni-tuebingen.de/en
The Neue Aula

Eberhard Karls University, Tubingen is a public university located in the city of Tübingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is one of Germany's oldest universities, internationally noted in medicine, natural sciences and the humanities. In the area of German Studies it has been ranked first among all German universities for many years. Tübingen is one of five classical "university towns" in Germany; the other four being Marburg, Gottingen, Freiburg and Heidelberg. The university is associated with some Nobel laureates, especially in the fields of medicine and chemistry.

Currently, around 22,000 students are enrolled. The 17 hospitals in Tübingen affiliated with the university's faculty of medicine have 1,500 patient beds, and cater to 66,000 in-patients and 200,000 out-patients on an annual basis.

In the 2011 QS World University Rankings the University of Tübingen was ranked 152nd in the world, making it the seventh highest ranked university in Germany. Its subject rankings were: 86th in Arts & Humanities, 129th in Life Sciences & Biomedicine, 201st in Natural Sciences, and 331st in Social Sciences. On 15 June 2012, the University of Tübingen was officially recognised as one of Germany's elite universities.

History

The University of Tübingen was founded in 1477 by Count Eberhard V (Eberhard im Bart, 1445–1496), later the first Duke of Württemberg, a civic and ecclesiastic reformer who established the school after becoming absorbed in the Renaissance revival of learning during his travels to Italy. Its first rector was Johannes Nauclerus.

Its present name was conferred on it in 1769 by Duke Karl Eugen who appended his first name to that of the founder (Karls being the possessive form of Karl). The university later became the principal university of the kingdom of Württemberg. Today, it is one of nine state universities funded by the German federal state of Baden-Württemberg.

The Main Building 'Neue Aula' in July 2007

The University of Tubingen has a history of innovative thought, particularly in theology, in which the university and the Tubinger Stift are famous to this day. Philipp Melanchthon (1497–1560), the prime mover in building the German school system and a chief figure in the Protestant Reformation, helped establish its direction. Among Tübingen's eminent students (and/or professors) have been the astronomer Johannes Kepler; the economist Horst Köhler (President of Germany); Joseph Ratzinger, former Cardinal and currently Pope Benedict XVI, poet Friedrich Holderlin, and the philosophers Friedrich Schelling and Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel. "The Tübingen Three" refers to Hölderlin, Hegel and Schelling, who were roommates at the Tübinger Stift. Theologian Helmut Thielicke revived postwar Tübingen when he took over a professorship at the reopened theological faculty in 1947, being made administrative head of the university and President of the Chancellor's Conference in 1951.

The university rose to the height of its prominence in the middle of the 19th century with the teachings of poet and civic leader Ludwig Uhland and the Protestant theologian Ferdinand Christian Baur, whose beliefs and disciples became known as the "Tübingen School" and which initiated historical analysis of Biblical texts, an approach also generally referred to as the higher criticism. The University of Tübingen also was the first German university to establish a faculty of natural sciences, in 1863. DNA was discovered in 1868 at the University of Tübingen by Friedrich Miescher. Christiane Nusslein-Volhard, the first female Nobel Prize winner in medicine in Germany, also works in Tübingen. The faculty for economics and business was founded in 1817 as 'Staatswissenschaftliche Fakultät' and was the first of its kind in Germany.

In 1970 the university was restructured into a series of faculties as independent departments of study and research after the manner of French universities.

The university made the headlines in November 2009 when a group of left-leaning students occupied one of the main lecture halls, the Kupferbau, for several days. The students' goal was to protest tuition fees and maintain that education should be free for everyone.

In May 2010 Tübingen joined the Matariki Network of Universities (MNU) together with Dartmouth College (USA), Durham University (UK), Queen’s University (Canada), University of Otago (New Zealand), University of Western Australia (Australia) and Uppsala University (Sweden).

Research focus

The Zentrum für Molekularbiologie der Pflanzen (Centre for molecular biology of plants) of the University of Tübingen is a multidisciplinary (plant physiology, plant biochemistry, plant genetics) plant science research facility, located on the Morgenstelle science campus

The University of Tübingen undertakes a broad range of research projects in various fields. The most prominent ones are to be found among the natural sciences. The Hertie Institute for Clinical Brain Research, for instance, focuses on general, cognitive and cellular neurology as well as neurodegeneration. The Centre for Interdisciplinary Clinical Research deals primarily with cell biology in diagnostics and therapy of organ system diseases.

Campus

The University of Tübingen is not a campus university, but is spread throughout the town. There are four areas with a major concentration of university institutions.

The university uses a number of buildings in the old town of Tubingen, some of which date back to the foundation of the university. Today, these are mainly used by smaller humanities departments, as is the adjacent castle, Schloss Hohentübingen.
Northeast of the old town, the Wilhelmstraße area surrounding the street of the same name is home to larger humanities departments as well as the university's administration. The main university library and main refectory are also in this area.
A new campus for the sciences was built in the 1970s at Morgenstelle, on a hill north of the historic centre of Tübingen. Facilities include a large refectory.
The university's teaching hospitals are located between the Wilhelmstraße area and the Morgenstelle campus in an area collectively known as the Klinikum.

Accommodation provided by the Tübingen Studentenwerk is in several locations throughout the town. The largest of the eleven halls of residence are at Waldhauser Ost (1,700 rooms) and in the Franzosisches Viertel (500 rooms).

Libraries

The university library is not just available to those affiliated with the university, but also to the general public. The library provides more than three million individual volumes and more than 7,600 journals. Apart from the main library, more than 80 departmental libraries containing an additional three million volumes are also associated with the university.

The Old Library

The main lending library is located on Wilhelmstraße and consists of several different parts which are connected through corridors and walkways.

The Bonatzbau, the library's oldest building, was built in 1912 and currently houses the historical reading room (Historischer Lesesaal), the university archive, along with a number of manuscript collections.
The library's main building, constructed in 1963, contains the information desk and research stations to access electronic catalogues and databases.
The Ammerbau is the most recent addition to the library complex. Built in 2002, it offers users direct access to over 300,000 volumes and latest issues of newspapers, magazines and journals. It also contains numerous work places and separate individual rooms for group work.

Organisation

Faculties

The university is made up of 14 faculties, some of which are subdivided into further departments.

Protestant Theology
Catholic Theology
Law
Economics and Business Administration
Medicine
Philosophy and History
Social and Behavioral Science
Modern Languages
Cultural Sciences
Mathematics and Physics
Chemistry and Pharmacy
Biology
Geosciences
Information and Cognitive Science

Governance

The university is governed by three separate bodies sharing with different functions and duties. However, some persons serve in more than one body.

The Rectorate is the executive component of the university's governing body. The current rector, Professor Bernd Engler, is supported by four deputies consisting of three prorectors and one provost. All are also permanent members of the university senate.

The Senate forms the legislative section of governance. Apart from the members of the rectorate, it includes the equal opportunities commissioner, the deans and 20 elected members representing the professors, lecturers, students and non-academic staff. Two advisors represent the university's teaching hospitals.

The University Council (Hochschulrat or Universitätsrat) has 13 members, including its president and vice-president as well as five further internal and six external members.

Student life

As the university's students make up roughly a quarter of the total population of Tübingen, the town's culture is to a large extent dominated by them. Consequently, there is a slump of activity during university holidays, particularly over the summer, when a large number of otherwise regular events do not take place.

Around 30 Studentenverbindungen, the German type of fraternities, are associated with the university. While famous for their parties, public academic lectures and the yearly "Stocherkahn-Rennen" punting-boat race on the Neckar river, some of them are the subject of ongoing controversy surrounding alleged rightwing policial views, leading to strong criticism from leftist groups. The university itself takes a neutral stance on this issue.Also closely linked to the university are a number of student societies representing mainly the arts and political parties. Most notable are a number of choirs as well as student theatre groups affiliated with the faculty of Modern Languages, some of which perform in foreign languages. Radio Uniwelle Tübingen is the university's radio station, airing seven hours of programmes a week produced by students under the supervision of staff employed by the university.

The university also offers gym and sports classes called Hochschulsport. Since Tübingen has a department of sports science with a broad range of facilities, students of other subjects have the possibility to participate in various kinds of sports courses in teams or as individuals. Furthermore, even exotic sports, such as parachuting or martial arts, are offered. Students may attend courses either for free or at reduced rates. The sports department is located close to the Wilhelmstraße area of university buildings and is served by a number of frequent bus routes.

Unlike in some major cities, student discounts are not widely available in Tübingen. Cinemas and the town council's public library in particular do not offer discounts for students, and there are only a handful of restaurants which have reduced lunch deals. However, students may benefit from the Semesterticket, a heavily discounted public transport season pass offering six months of unlimited travel on trains and buses in the naldo Verkehrsverbund transport association for approximately €62.50. The Landestheater Tübingen theatre and all public swimming pools also have discounts for students.

Nightlife in Tübingen is centered on the numerous pubs in the old town along with a number of clubs, most of which dedicate themselves to non-mainstream music. During the semester, the Studentenwerk-owned Clubhaus at the centre of the Wilhelmstraße university area hosts the weekly Clubhausfest on Thursday nights(this no longer exists). This popular, free-entry club night is organised and promoted by student societies and Fachschaft student representative bodies and all proceeds go towards their activities in support of students.

Points of interest

Botanischer Garten der Universität Tübingen, the university's botanical garden
The university´s geological trail at Kirnberg: The geological trail is located in the natural park Schonbuch at Kirnberg and was created in 1977 to the 500th anniversary of the Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen.

Notable alumni

This list also includes alumni of the Tübinger Stift, which is not a part of the University, but has a close relationship with it.

Nobel laureates

William Ramsay (1904, Chemistry)
Eduard Buchner (1907, Chemistry)
Karl Ferdinand Braun (1909, Physics)
Adolf Butenandt (1939, Chemistry)
Albert Schweitzer (1952, Peace)
Georg Wittig (1979, Chemistry)
Hartmut Michel (1988, Chemistry)
Bert Sakmann (1991, Physiology or Medicine)
Christiane Nüsslein-Volhard (1995, Physiology or Medicine)
Günter Blobel (1999, Physiology or Medicine)

Theology

Karl Barth, Swiss Christian theologian
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Lutheran theologian, pastor and opponent of the Nazi Regime
Rudolf Bultmann, Christian theologian, famous for existential biblical interpretation
David F. Ford, Regius Professor of Divinity at the University of Cambridge since 1991[16]
Romano Guardini, Roman Catholic priest, author and academic
Walter Kasper, Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church
Hans Küng, Roman Catholic theologian, critic of Catholic doctrine (now banned from teaching Roman Catholic theology at official Catholic institutions)
Philipp Melanchthon, Protestant reformer
Pope Benedict XVI, formerly known as Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger
Charles-Frédéric Reinhard, politician
Philip Schaff, Church historian
Miroslav Volf, Christian theologian at Yale University.
Jan Paulsen Seventh-day Adventist Church Former President
Denton Lotz, General Secretary of the Baptist World Alliance (until 2007, December 31)
Martin Hengel, Lutheran theologian, specialising in the Second Temple period
Protopresbyter-Stavrophor Vasilije Tomić, Serbian Orthodox priest and theologian in Toronto.
Albert Schweitzer, Humanitarian and Theologian, Nobel Peace Prize 1952

Law

Martin Bangemann, German minister of economy (1984–1988) and EU commissioner (1989–1999)
Herta Däubler-Gmelin, German minister of justice (1998–2002)
Roman Herzog, President of Germany (1994–1999)
Philipp Jenninger, President of the German federal parliament (1984–1988)
Klaus Kinkel, vice-chancellor and minister of foreign affairs of Germany (1993–1998)
Gebhard Müller, President of the Federal Constitutional Court of Germany (1959–1971)
Carlo Schmid, German politician and one of the "fathers of the constitution"
Konstantin Freiherr von Neurath, Minister of foreign affairs of Germany (1932–1938)
Gerhard Anschütz, father of the constitution of the Bundesland Hesse
Christoph Martin Wieland, poet
Jürgen Wöhler (*1950), German lawyer and manager
Gunther Heinrich Freiherr von Berg, (1783–1786) University Professor and State Cabinet Minister/Privy Councillor

Economics

Helmut Haussmann, German minister of economy (1988–1991)
Friedrich List
Horst Kohler, director of the IMF (2000–2004) and President of Germany (2004–2010)
Jürgen Stark, Chief Economist and Member of the Executive Committee of the European Central Bank
Klaus Topfer, United Nations Under-Secretary-General and Executive-Director of the United Nations Environment Programme

German Literature

Eugen Gerstenmaier (1906–1986), President of the German federal parliament (1954–1969)
Walter Jens (b. 1923), philologist, literature historian and critic
Siegfried Unseld (1924–2002), publisher (Suhrkamp)
Martin Walser (b. 1927), writer

History

Kurt Georg Kiesinger, Chancellor of Germany (1966–1969)
Rita Sussmuth, President of the German federal parliament (1988–1998)
Professor Dr Lothar Hilbert, historian (b. 1924)
Hans Mommsen, historian (b. 1930)

Archaeology

Marija Gimbutas, archaeologist (1921–1994)
Manfred Korfmann, archaeologist, director of excavations in Troy
Sir Aurel Stein, archaeologist (PhD. 1883)

Egyptology

Boyo Ockinga, Egyptologist

Indology and Hinduism

Heinrich von Stietencron, Indologist

Philosophy

Johannes Reuchlin, humanist and philosopher
Friedrich Holderlin, poet
Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, philosopher
Heinrich Christoph Wilhelm Sigwart, philosopher
Christoph von Sigwart, philosopher
Friedrich Wilhelm Joseph von Schelling, philosopher
Ernst Bloch, philosopher
Burghart Schmidt, philosopher
Otfried Hoffe, philosopher
Julian Nida-Rümelin, philosopher
Ernst Tugendhat, philosopher
Manfred Frank, philosopher

Medicine, biology, chemistry

Alois Alzheimer, psychiatrist and neuropathologist
Victor von Bruns, surgeon
Lothar Meyer, chemist (1830–1895)
Friedrich Miescher, biologist
Felix Hoppe-Seyler, chemist and physiologist
Karl von Vierordt, physiologist (1818–1884)
Gonzalo Mena Rojas,Oral and maxillofacial surgeon

Natural Sciences/Mathematics

Leonhart Fuchs (1501–1566), botany, physics
Johannes Kepler (1571–1630), astronomy
Wilhelm Schickard (1592–1635), astronomy
Rudolf Jakob Camerarius (1665–1721), botany, physics
Johann Georg Gmelin (1709–1755), botany
Georg Carl Ludwig Sigwart (1784–1864), chemistry, biology
Hugo von Mohl (1805–1872), botany
Theodor Eimer (1843–1898), zoology and comparative anatomy
Hans Geiger (1882–1945), physics
Karl Meissner (1891–1959), physics
Bei Shizhang (1903–2009), biology
SM Razaullah Ansari, (1932-), physics, astronomy

Psychology

Wolfgang Kohler, psychologist
Robert Zajonc (1923–2008), psychologist

Sociology

Ralf Dahrendorf, sociologist, economist, political scientist and politician

University Hospital of Tubingen

Summary:

The University Hospital of Tübingen has established itself as a leading centre of German university medicine. The German Science Council has attested the Hospital and the Medical School’s outstanding achievements in research, education and healthcare as well as its role as a pacemaker for university medicine in Germany.

Description:

As a hospital offering maximum medical care and with a catchment area extending from the Mittlerer Neckar metropolitan region to Lake Constance, Tübingen University Hospital is known beyond its regional borders and functions as a district hospital for the city and district of Tübingen. Since January 1998, the Hospital has been a public-law institution with a board of directors and a supervisory board.
A network system that supports the dialogue between basic research, research into disease and clinically relevant, patient-oriented research enables top-class teams of international acclaim to translate their latest scientific findings into clinical applications that will benefit the patient. These include novel diagnostic methods, therapeutic procedures and preventive health measures.

The Faculty of Medicine acknowledges its social responsibility and welcomes new initiatives such as the introduction of new fields of study, for example, or the creation of new impulses for industry by means of technology transfer.
Internationally, the Faculty of Medicine is renowned for the high quality of its scientific research. Rated according to the sum of its third-party funds, its numerous collaborative research centres, research training groups and research teams and the long list of its national and international collaborations, in current evaluations the Faculty of Medicine in Tübingen ranks among the top ten of all medical faculties in Germany.
The Faculty of Medicine has a particularly strong focus of interest in competitive research areas of national and international importance in the following fields:

Neurosciences
Immunology and Oncology
Infection Biology
Vascular Medicine and Diabetes
Imaging
Minimally invasive procedures
Regenerative medicine

Sections
Independent research sections are integrated into many of the clinical departments at the Faculty of Medicine and at the University Hospital. This unique set-up for clinical research in Germany is known as "The Tübingen Model" ("Tübinger Modell").
Research sections are an integral part of certain individual departments. The heads of these sections are at liberty to determine their own research priorities. Since the introduction of research sections, third-party funds and the quality and quantity of publications have increased remarkably. Research sections have therefore played a major part in putting Tübingen on the map as a first-class address for science and research.

Clinical Sections

Addiction Medicine and Addiction Research
Dermatologic Oncology
Forensic Psychiatry and Psychotherapy
Motility Disorders, Periocular Surgery and Pediatric Opthalmology
Neuropsychology
Renal and Hypertensive Disorders

Research Sections

Biomedical Physics
Cell and Molecular Biology, ZMF
Cellular and Molecular Microbiology
Clinical Neurogenetics
Experimental Anaesthesiology
Experimental Magnetic Resonance of the Central Nervous System (CNS)
Experimental Ophthalmic Surgery
Experimental Radiology
Experimental Virology
Experimental Vitreoretinal Surgery
Immunopathology of the Central Nervous System (CNS)
Laboratory for Preclinical Imaging and Imaging Technology of the Werner Siemens Foundation
Medical Materials and Technology
Minimally Invasive Surgery
Molecular Gastroenterology and Hepatology
Molecular Immunology
Neurobiology of the Eye
Neuropsychology
Physiological Acoustics and Communication
Radiobiology and Molecular Environmental Research
Transplantation Immunology and Immunohaematology