Published: 1st December 2021
22 questions about the TU Darmstadt and the city of science Darmstadt – this is how the #studentsofTUdarmstadt bring you closer to their university and their student life in Darmstadt.
In the ancient Greek mythology, Athena is a patron goddess of the arts and sciences. She was introduced as an official emblem of TU Darmstadt in 1945 carrying the meaning of science and humanism. You could also find a sculpture of Athena from 1895 as a central figure on the tympanum of the former main building (S1|03). The other figures surrounding her are the allegories for the arts of engineering, architecture, mechanical engineering and natural science.
This question comes from Masha
Darmstadt has 150.000 inhabitants. 40.000 of them are students, marking around 30% of all inhabitants. Most of them study at TU Darmstadt with around 22000 students. Another 16.800 study at Hochschule Darmstadt (h_da) and around 2.800 students go to other universities.
This question comes from Richard
The best-known Nobel Prize winner from the TU Darmstadt is the physicist Peter Grünberg, who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2007 for the discovery of the GMR effect. He laid the foundation for his impressive scientific career in Darmstadt, at the time the Technische Hochschule Darmstadt. There he studied physics, received his diploma in 1966 and then his doctorate. The focus of his research was in the field of solid-state research.
Gerhard Herzberg received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1971 for his work on the electronic structure of molecules. He also studied, obtained his doctorate and worked as a private lecturer in the field of physics at the then TH Darmstadt. However, due to his marriage to the Jewish scientist Luise Oettinger, his contract was not renewed and he immigrated to Canada.
Other Nobel Prize winners such as Hermann Staudinger (Nobel Prize winner for Chemistry 1953) and Horst Ludwig Störmer (Nobel Prize for Physics 1988) were also at the TU or TH Darmstadt for a short time.
Unfortunately, there are (still) no women among the Nobel Laureates of the TU Darmstadt – but hopefully that will change soon!
Other important personalities of the TU Darmstadt – also some women – can be found here.
This question comes from Catalina
The term “Heiner” colloquially refers to a person born in Darmstadt. But where does this term come from and why is it not called Darmstädter?
Originally, it was assumed that the term derives from a non-existent town of Heinheim, or that it comes from the fact that in the old town of Darmstadt many used to bear the first name “Heinrich”, which was also commonly abbreviated as “Heiner”.
In fact, the term “Heiner” probably comes from the early New High German word “Heune”, which means something like “uncouth, rough guy”. This is probably what the inhabitants of Darmstadt's old town, who spoke in a coarse dialect, used to be called. Originally the term had a negative connotation, but towards the end of the 19th century it probably changed. Possibly plays by Ernst Elias, such as the “Datterich”, which is written entirely in dialect, contributed to this.
Source: Becker, Rudolf: „Der Darmstädter Heiner. Bisher unbekannte Quellen und eine neue Theorie über den Ursprung dieser Benennung“. In: Archiv für Hessische Geschichte und Altertumskunde, NF 59, 2001, S. 335-348.
This question comes from Moritz
According to the Language Resource Centre, the enrolment figures for the Japanese beginners' course “Japanese I/II” are the highest.
This question comes from Arya
Not to be confused with the question “What is theDarmstadtium?, which would be a conference center in Darmstadt.
Darmstadtium is an element, discovered by the GSI Helmholtzzentrum für Schwerionenforschung, an Institute for Heavy Ion Research at Darmstadt. It was artificially created by fusing lead- and nickel-ions and has half-lives between 3.1 µs and 1.1 min. Thus, it decomposes relatively fast.
The original name Ununnilium, which is super hard to pronounce, was officially changed to Darmstadtium to honor the GSI Darmstadt, as they’ve already discovered and created 6 elements. This makes Darmstadt the only German city after which an element was named.
This question comes from David
- 1x
- 2x
- 3x
TU Darmstadt has been taking part in the Sportabzeichen Uni-Challenge (Sport Badge University Challenge) since 2017 and has been unbeaten ever since. After three victories in a row, with your support we would like to be at the top of the podium again in the next Challenge 2022! Our motto: "Four wins!
This question comes from the USZ
Darmstadt was first mentioned at the end of the 11th century as “darmundestat” in a list of dead of the Mainz cathedral abbey. It probably originates from an armed royal farm estate owner named Darimund who settled in today's Darmstadt area. This interpretation is the most probable one.
However, there are other approaches which assume that the name could be a derivation of the Middle High German words “darre” for “gate” and “mund” for “rampart” and thus alludes to Darmstadt as a fortress. Some suspect a Celtic root, after which the terms “oak” or “tree” and “mountain” (mont) are included in the name.
There is also a widespread belief that the Darmbach was the source of the city's name. However, the Darmbach was not named as such until the 18th century.
Various spellings Darmstadt has had throughout its history are:
11. century darmundestat
1211 darmenstat
1234 darmistat
1330 darmbstat
This question comes from Laura
- Mechanical Engineering
- Computer Science
- Law and Economics
In the last winter semester 20/21, the Department 20 Computer Science was the absolute leader with a total of 3.704 students. This is no wonder as TU Darmstadt has a good reputation when it comes to computer science and informatics and it is one of the fastest developing fields. The chances of graduates on the job market are promising!
This question comes from Polina
Yes, you can! Or at least almost! A railing leads from the congress centre “Darmstadtium” to the railway track 9 3/4. Thus, theoretically, the citizens of Darmstadt could travel to Hogwarts. However, this is a work of art by the artist Carola Keitelnaja.
This question comes from Juan
No less a person than the famous physicist Albert Einstein is said to have recommended the university in Darmstadt, now the TU Darmstadt, to his nephew.
You can find more information about this in our blog post "At the top in engineering for over 140 years ” and among the famous personalities of the TU Darmstadt.
This question comes from David
In my opinion, you definitely ought to go to Darmstadt. They have a good polytechnic school there (Albert Einstein, 1919).
- Less than 100
- Between 100-150
- More than 150
According to the stats, international students from around 130 countries study at our university.
About 20 per cent of 25.355 students are international! ( WiSe 2020/21, https://www.tu-darmstadt.de/universitaet/index.de.jsp)
Source: Data Warehouse TU Darmstadt – Amtsstatistik-Meldung
This question comes from Moiz
- Sports course “Schwitzfit”
- Zumba sports course
- Quidditch course
According to the Uni-Sportzentrum USZ (University Sports Centre), the most popular sports course is “Schwitzfit” (literally “Sweatfit”), the most popular sports venues are the university stadium and Unifit.
More information about the leisure activities at the TU Darmstadt can be found in the blog post “The TU Darmstadt turns spare time into fun time ”.
This question comes from Aravind
Thanks to the physicist Erasmus Kittler, who was appointed to the world's first chair of electrical engineering in 1882, the Faculty of Electrical Engineering was founded one year later. At that time, today's TU was still called TH Darmstadt. This made possible the world's first degree program in this field. Erasmus Kittler continued to work as a professor at the TH. Since then, this faculty has seen several more greats in this field. For example, Hans Busch was also a professor of communications engineering and thus established modern electron optics at the TH in 1930. More Information
This question comes from Maria
Currently, you can choose from 22 languages. You can currently take courses in the following languages at different levels: Arabic, Chinese, Danish, German as a foreign language, German as Sign Language, English, Finnish, French, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Kurdish, Latin, Dutch, Norwegian, Polish, Portugese, Russian, Swedish, Self-regulated Learning, Spanish, Turkish, Vietnamese.
This question comes from Nicole
Around 76% of our students strive right now for a bachelor's degree, 20% for a master's degree. Around 72% of all students aim for a master's degree as their highest degree. Around 17% want to become a Ph.D. in their respective field.
This question comes from Richard
The hashtag #better TUgether stands for Student Health Management (SGM) at TU Darmstadt. They want to develop health-promoting concepts for and together with you, so that you can feel well and study health-consciously at TU Darmstadt.
Take a look at the SGM's offers, try them out and contribute your ideas! Because together we are #betterTUgether!
This question comes from the USZ
Lichtwiesenbahn !
For a faster connection to the Campus Lichtwiese, the tram connection Lichtwiesenbahn is in progress. Students and memebers of the TU will soon have more flexibility to get faster to the Campus.
This question comes from Ravan
The university catering staff prepare around 10,000 meals for you every day in the dining halls and bistros.
This question comes from Polina
Of the more than 5000 international students enrolled at TU Darmstadt, approximately 70% are enrolled in German-taught programmes, while the remaining 30% study in English.
Source: TUCaN Datenbank (Intern)
This question comes from Diego
According to the most recent graduate surveys published by HDA (Hochschuldidaktische Arbeitsstelle) – the Center for Educational Development and Technology of TU Darmstadt – the average period of a job search lasts approximately 4 months. 1,5 years upon graduation, the majority of TU Darmstadt master graduates have regular employment. Between 64 and 78 per cent of graduates claim to be happy with their job. For more information check HDA.
This question comes from Masha
