University of Munich – Overview
The University of Munich is a public university with a history dating back to 1472. Located in Munich—the capital of Bavaria and one of Germany’s biggest cities—the university has two main campuses. The downtown campus focuses on social sciences and humanities, while the “HighTechCampus” in the southeast hosts natural and life sciences. In a recent academic year, slightly over half of the students were undergraduates.
Often referred to as LMU Munich, the university typically doesn’t charge tuition, though some English-taught degree programs do have fees. Student housing is limited but available through Studentenwerk München (Munich Student Union), a public organization.
The university has 18 academic departments, covering fields like business administration, medicine, and social sciences, with over 200 degree programs. While German is the main language of instruction, there are select English-taught master’s programs in areas such as economics, neuro-cognitive psychology, and software engineering.
The academic year follows a semester system, starting in October and April. Research is a major focus, with around 50 centers, including the Center for Neuropathology, the Center for Quantitative Risk Analysis, and the Munich Center for Ethics. Additionally, the university collaborates with external research institutes like the Bavarian Academy of Fine Arts and the Institute of Law for Lawyers.
University of Munich Rankings
The University of Munich holds the #57 spot in the Best Global Universities ranking. These rankings are based on widely recognized indicators of academic excellence.
Key Rankings:
- #57 – Best Global Universities
- #16 – Best Global Universities in Europe
- #2 – Best Global Universities in Germany
Subject Rankings:
- #25 – Arts and Humanities
- #50 – Biology and Biochemistry
- #127 – Biotechnology and Applied Microbiology
- #41 – Cardiac and Cardiovascular Systems (tie)
- #60 – Cell Biology
- #136 – Chemistry
- #60 – Clinical Medicine (tie)
- #131 – Computer Science
- #163 – Condensed Matter Physics
- #145 – Ecology
- #150 – Economics and Business (tie)
- #16 – Education and Educational Research
- #77 – Endocrinology and Metabolism
- #705 – Engineering (tie)
- #125 – Environment/Ecology
- #89 – Gastroenterology and Hepatology
- #104 – Geosciences
- #26 – Immunology
- #125 – Infectious Diseases
- #146 – Materials Science
- #200 – Mathematics (tie)
- #83 – Meteorology and Atmospheric Sciences
- #108 – Microbiology
- #34 – Molecular Biology and Genetics
- #169 – Nanoscience and Nanotechnology
- #25 – Neuroscience and Behavior
- #55 – Oncology (tie)
- #78 – Optics
- #96 – Pharmacology and Toxicology (tie)
- #217 – Physical Chemistry (tie)
- #41 – Physics
- #188 – Plant and Animal Science (tie)
- #30 – Psychiatry/Psychology (tie)
- #62 – Public, Environmental and Occupational Health
- #15 – Radiology, Nuclear Medicine and Medical Imaging
- #102 – Social Sciences and Public Health (tie)
- #52 – Space Science
- #81 – Surgery
2025-2026 Indicator Rankings
Thirteen performance indicators determine the University of Munich’s overall ranking. Here’s how it compares globally in each category:
See the Methodology
- #57 – Best Global Universities
- Global Score: 75
- Global Research Reputation: #70
- Regional Research Reputation: #6
- Publications: #77
- Books: #110
- Conferences: #174
- Normalized Citation Impact: #190
- Total Citations: #71
- Top 10% Most Cited Publications: #72
- Percentage of Top 10% Most Cited Publications: #210
- International Collaboration (Relative to Country): #694
- International Collaboration: #515
- Top 1% Most Cited Papers: #70
- Percentage of Top 1% Most Cited Papers: #215