University of Erlangen-Nuremberg

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University of Erlangen-Nuremberg
Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg
FAU Erlangen-Nuremberg Skyline.jpg
University of Erlangen-Nuremberg skyline
Motto in English Advance through Networks
Established 1742 (first)
November 4, 1743 (1743-11-04) (moved)
Type Public
Endowment €148 million (External funding 2011)[1]
Chancellor Thomas AH Schöck
President Prof. Dr. rer. pol. Karl-Dieter Grüske
Vice-president

1. Prof. Dr. Christoph Korbmacher
(Vice President for International Relations)
2. Prof. Dr. Antje Kley
(Vice President for Teaching)
3. Prof. Dr.-Ing. Joachim Hornegger
(Vice President for Research)

[2]
Academic staff 624 (Professorship positions)[3]
Admin. staff 12,000 employees (4,800 in the Institute area and the administrative)
Students 35,363 (WS 2012/13)[4]
Undergraduates 17,955
Postgraduates 4,388
Doctoral students

751 (2011)

[5]
Other students 13,020
Location Erlangen and Nuremberg, Bavaria, Germany
49°35′52.5″N 11°0′17.17″E / 49.597917°N 11.0047694°E / 49.597917; 11.0047694Coordinates: 49°35′52.5″N 11°0′17.17″E / 49.597917°N 11.0047694°E / 49.597917; 11.0047694
Campus Urban
Former names Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen
Colors Blue     
Nickname FAU
Affiliations Domestic:
1. Bavarian State Ministry for Science, Research and Art
2. DFG
3. Excellence Universities
International:
1.Top Industrial Managers for Europe
2. SEFI
Website fau.eu(English)
fau.de(German)
Logo of the Universität of Erlangen-Nürnberg

University of Erlangen-Nuremberg (German: Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg) better known as FAU is a public research university in the cities Erlangen and Nuremberg in Bavaria, Germany. University name Friedrich-Alexander came from the university's first founder Friedrich, Margrave of Brandenburg-Bayreuth, and its benefactor Christian Frederick Charles Alexander, Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach.

FAU is the second largest state university in the state Bavaria and largest one in the Northern Bavarian region, which is having five faculties, 23 departments, 24 clinical departments and 11 autonomous departments (until winter semester 2012/13).[6] There are roughly 12,000 employees in the university those are working in various departments (including university clinic).

In winter semester 2012/13 around 35,363 students were enrolled at the university in 153 study programs out of them, about 2/3 are studying in Erlangen campus and remaining 1/3 in Nuremberg campus of the university. These statics puts FAU in among the 12 largest universities in Germany. There are also about 2850 foreign students enrolled in the university in various programs.

In 2006 and 2007, in the line of the excellence initiative FAU was chosen by DFG as one of the winner in the German Universities Excellence Initiative.[7] FAU is also a member of DFG (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft)[8] and the Top Industrial Managers for Europe[9] network.

Contents

History [edit]

Frederick, Margrave of Brandenburg-Bayreuth,founder of FAU

University was founded in 1742 in Bayreuth by Frederick, Margrave of Brandenburg-Bayreuth, and moved to Erlangen in 1743. Christian Frederick Charles Alexander, Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach (one of the two namesakes of the institution) provided significant support to the early university. From the beginning, the university was a Protestant institution, but it slowly secularized. During the Nazi era, the university was one of the first that had a majority of Nazi supporters in the student council. In 1961 the business college in Nuremberg was merged with the university in Erlangen, which led to the present state of a university divided between two towns. A technical faculty was inaugurated in 1966 and the pedagogical college in Nuremberg became part of the university in 1972.

Schloss Erlangen
The castle in the center of Erlangen, known to many simply as the Schloss, is home to a large part of the university's administration
2011, detached logo with the seal of the university, which is now uses as watermark in letterhead of the university

Timeline [edit]

Below is a short timeline of the FAU from its inception to its present form:

  • 1700-1704: The Schloss of the Margraves at Erlangen is built.
  • 1743: Friedrich, Margrave of Brandenburg-Bayreuth, issues an edict whereby the university recently founded in Bayreuth is transferred to Erlangen. It has the four faculties of Protestant Theology, Jurisprudence, Medicine and Philosophy.
  • 1769: The University at Erlangen is given the new name of Friedrich-Alexander-Universität in honour of Alexander, Margrave of Ansbach and Bayreuth.
  • 1818: The library of the University of Altdorf, dissolved in 1809, is moved to Erlangen.
  • 1824: The first hospital is built.
  • 1825: The University moves into the Schloss.
  • 1927: Science is taken out of the Faculty of Arts thus creating the new Faculty of Science.
  • 1961: The FAU acquires a further faculty through merger with the Nuremberg College of Economics and Social Sciences (founded in 1919). The University's name is now Friedrich-Alexander-University Erlangen-Nürnberg.
  • 1966: Faculty of Engineering Sciences is established. (FAU is thus the first of the traditional universities of the old federal republic to incorporate engineering as an independent faculty)
  • 1972: The Teacher Training College in Nuremberg is incorporated into the Faculty of Education.
  • 1993: The FAU celebrates its 250th anniversary.
  • 1994: The Free State of Bavaria purchases for the university 4.4 hectares of land in Erlangen previously owned by the US military. The area is now called Röthelheim Campus.
  • 1995: The WiSo Faculty (Business Administration, Economics & Social Sciences) celebrates its 75th anniversary.
  • 2000: The Bavaria-California Technology Centre opens its headquarters at the University of Erlangen-Nürnberg.
  • 2000: Inauguration of the Research Centre in Clinical Molecular Biology in Erlangen.
  • 2001: Opening of the Röthelheim Campus on the site of the old artillery barracks.
  • 2004: Inauguration of the new building at the WiSo Faculty of Business Administration, Economics & Social Sciences in Nuremberg.

Faculties [edit]

The Kollegienhaus, the historical central building and lecture hall of the University at the borders of the Schlossgarten

In February 2007 the senate of the university decided upon a restructuring into five faculties [3]. Since October 2007 the FAU consists of:[10]

  • Faculty of Humanities, Social Sciences and Theology
  • Faculty of Business, Economics and Law
  • Faculty of Medicine
  • Faculty of Sciences
  • Faculty of Engineering

The following faculties were part of the university (sorted in the order in which they were founded):

Logo of the University Hospital
Old University Library (Erlangen)

Research [edit]

University research centres [edit]

Below is a list of research centres which are directly or indirectly affiliated to the university:

Other research centres associated with FAU [edit]

International Audio Laboratories Erlangen[11] [edit]

International Audio Laboratories Erlangen (or AudioLabs) is a joint institution of Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits and University of Erlangen-Nürnberg. The University provides six professorship positions to the research center and guarantees the scientific integration into the academic environment. Fraunhofer IIS will provide a budget to fund AudioLabs for an initial period of ten years. AudioLabs will benefit from Fraunhofer IIS’ extensive history and expertise in the field of audio and multimedia technologies. This close cooperation of both partners allows for a unique organization with competencies ranging from basic research and teaching to technology implementation in innovative multimedia systems.

AudioLabs is located on the premises of Fraunhofer IIS in Tennenlohe. Being in the vicinity of the Erlangen University and the Audio & Multimedia division of Fraunhofer IIS, this location enables close scientific collaboration in an ideal way. In addition, it allows for use of the modern infrastructure of Fraunhofer IIS including acoustics labs, recording studios or digital cinema labs.

Cluster of Excellence Engineering of Advanced Materials[12][13] [edit]

Clusters of Excellence concentrate and focus the research potential at university locations in Germany and, hence, strengthen their international visibility and competitiveness. Their policy is to engage in scientific networking and collaboration in research fields of particular promise for the future. Besides various university institutions, non-university research institutions and industrial partners also play a important role throughout the Clusters. Clusters of Excellence have been conceived to contribute importantly to the respective university’s strategic planning and to accelerate the process of setting thematic priorities at universities. Under the Excellence Initiative, a total of 37 Clusters of Excellence receive funding over a period of five years, with each Cluster of Excellence receiving an average of 6.5 million euros per year.
At university of Erlangen-Nürnberg there are two specialist cluster of excellence in the field of material science, lasers and lights.

From Molecules to Materials Innovative[14] [edit]

Main research areas are in the field of material science.

Optics and Photonics[15] [edit]

The university's Institute of Optics, Information and Photonics bundles a major focus in optical technologies within the faculty of natural sciences and has been the source for the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light. Together with chairs of the engineering faculty, the Erlangen Graduate School in Advanced Optical Technologies and the Cluster of Excellence in Advanced Materials, optics and photonics technologies play an important role as a highly interdisciplinary field, attracting several Max Planck Junior Research Groups and Alexander von Humboldt fellows to the institution.

University facilities[16] [edit]

Academic ranking [edit]

Institutional ranking [edit]

Overall world academic ranking of the university published by Academic Ranking of World Universities:[17]

Ranking 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003
Academic Ranking of World Universities 201-300 201-300 201-300 201-302 201-302 203-304 201-300 203-300 202-301 201-300

Broad subject fields ranking [edit]

Performance in academic ranking of world universities by broad subject fields published by Academic Ranking of World Universities:[18]

Broad Subject Fields 2012
Engineering/Technology and Computer Science (ENG) 101-150
Life and Agriculture Sciences (LIFE) 151-200
Clinical Medicine and Pharmacy (MED) 151-200

Campuses [edit]

FAU Busan campus [edit]

FAU is the first German university to establish a branch campus in Busan in the Republic of Korea. In November 2009, its campus project received approval from the Korean Ministry of Education, Science and Technology. The FAU Busan Branch Campus offers a Graduate School with a master degree program in Chemical and Bioengineering and a research center.[19]

Awards [edit]

Alexander von Humboldt Professorships [edit]

In 2010 the newly announced professor of physics and co-director of the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light, Prof. Vahid Sandoghdar awarded Alexander von Humboldt Professorship,[20] Germany’s highest-endowed international research award, entailed with € 3.5 million. In the year 2011, second in a row, FAU communications engineer and researcher Prof. Dr.-Ing Robert Schober (born 1971) awarded an Alexander von Humboldt Professorship, entailed with € 3.5 million,[21][22][23] for an algorithm developed by him which is found in many modern phones today.

German Excellence Initiative [edit]

The University of Erlangen Nuremberg was successful within the German Universities Excellence Initiative in competing for a "cluster of excellence" and a graduate school.[24] The cluster of excellence, "Engineering of Advanced Materials" focusses on interdisciplinarily developing new materials, joining engineering and natural sciences. The graduate school "Erlangen Graduate School in Advanced Optical Technologies" emphasizes a strong focus in optical and photonics technology in the natural sciences, in engineering and the medical sciences and aims for a concise Ph.D. education. It is supplemented with a masters program in the same topics.

Both programs after an in-depth evaluation were extended for the third phase of the German Excellence Initiative in 2012 until 2017. They contribute significantly to the research funding of the university, including five new research buildings, permanent new technical facilities and research and teaching staff. They also aim to increase the international perception of the contributing fields of research in Erlangen.

Notable alumni and professors [edit]

Gallery [edit]

  • University administration building

  • FAU faculty of Engineering campus

  • Department of Computer Science

  • Department of Electrical, Electronic and Communication Engineering

  • Property for good thoughts designed by Marian Bogusz, in faculty of Engineering campus

  • Philosophical faculty and central lecture hall

  • Regional Computing Centre

Points of interest [edit]

See also [edit]

External links [edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg

Notes and references [edit]

  1. ^ "Uni Erlangen Funding". uni-erlangen.de. Retrieved 2012-10-17. 
  2. ^ "Uni Erlangen Management". uni-erlangen.de. Retrieved 2012-10-17. 
  3. ^ "Uni Erlangen professorship positions". uni-erlangen.de. Retrieved 2012-01-27. 
  4. ^ "Uni Erlangen Students". uni-erlangen.de. Retrieved 2012-10-17. 
  5. ^ "Uni Erlangen Statistics". uni-erlangen.de. Retrieved 2013-02-02. 
  6. ^ http://www.uni-erlangen.org/university/stats.shtml uni-erlangen facts
  7. ^ http://www.bmbf.de/pubRD/2012-06-15_Finale_Foerderliste_2.pdf
  8. ^ Dfg.de
  9. ^ Time-association.org
  10. ^ "Uni Erlangen Faculties". uni-erlangen.de. Retrieved 2012-01-27. 
  11. ^ "International Audio Laboratories Erlangen". audiolabs-erlangen.com. Retrieved May, 2012. 
  12. ^ http://www.excellence-initiative.com/excellence-initiative
  13. ^ http://www.excellence-initiative.com/erlangen-nuernberg-materials-functional-devices
  14. ^ Materials
  15. ^ Paths
  16. ^ "Associated facilities with FAU". uni-erlangen.de. Retrieved 2012-01-31. 
  17. ^ http://www.shanghairanking.com/Institution.jsp?param=University%20of%20Erlangen-Nuremberg# World academic ranking of the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg
  18. ^ http://www.shanghairanking.com/Institution.jsp?param=University%20of%20Erlangen-Nuremberg# Broad subject fields ranking of the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg
  19. ^ http://fau-busan.ac.kr/en/gu/gu_1.html FAU Busan campus
  20. ^ http://www.humboldt-foundation.de/web/ahp-2010.html
  21. ^ http://www.humboldt-foundation.de/web/ahp-2011.html
  22. ^ http://www.uni-erlangen.org/institutions-and-services/press-office/press-releases/news/2011/10/27/18.shtml
  23. ^ http://www.research-in-germany.de/service/newsletter/newsletter-issue-15-december-2011-january-2012/latest-r-d-funding-programmes/90536/funding-activities-1.html
  24. ^ http://www.bmbf.de/en/1321.php
  25. ^ [1] Retrieved 2012-10-19
  26. ^ [2] Retrieved 2012-10-19
University of Erlangen-Nuremberg
—Erlangen-Nuremberg, Germany—
Faculties
  • Faculty of Humanities, Social Sciences and Theology
  • Faculty of Business, Economics and Law
  • Faculty of Medicine
  • Faculty of Sciences
  • Faculty of Engineering
Associated Institutions
Various
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