Chemnitz University of Technology () is a public university in Chemnitz, Germany. With around 8,300 students, it is the third largest university in Saxony. It was founded in 1836 as Königliche Gewerbschule (Royal Mercantile College) and was elevated to a Technische Hochschule, a university of technology, in 1963. With approximately 2,400 employees in science, engineering and management, Chemnitz University of Technology is among the most important employers in the region.
History
Foundation The tradition of science in this region goes back to the 16th century when Georg Agricola (1494–1555), a famous German scholar of minerals, served as the city's mayor. Historically, the university emerged from the Gewerbschule (trade school) founded in 1836. One year later, a Baugewerkenschule (school for the building trades) became affiliated with the Königliche Gewerbschule (Royal Trade School), which was followed by a Königliche Werkmeisterschule (Royal School for Master Craftsmen) in 1855. An existing Fabrikzeichenschule (Factory Mark School) in Chemnitz was affiliated to the Gewerbeschule at the time of its founding, but it was separated from the Gewerbschule for budgetary reasons in 1858. These four schools existed side by side and were unified by their director. In 1878, these schools were formally united in a school association – the Kasse der Technischen Staatslehranstalten (Office of the Technical Educational Institutions). The Gewerbeschule in particular, which was renamed the Gewerbeakademie in 1900 and the Staatliche Akademie für Technik (Public Academy of Technology) in 1929, achieved high recognition in Germany and a special position among the technical colleges and technical schools.
During the German Democratic Republic Era After World War II, the association was reopened as a purely technical school under the name Technische Lehranstalten (Technical Academy) in 1947. In 1953, the Hochschule für Maschinenbau Karl-Marx-Stadt (Karl-Marx-Stadt College of Mechanical Engineering) was reestablished at the same location and in the same building. Over the course of the adjustment of the technical school landscape in the GDR, the old technical school was dissolved in 1955. The College of Mechanical Engineering was elevated to the status of a technical college in 1963 and to that of a technical university in 1986.
For basic Marxist–Leninist studies, which had been obligatory since 1951 for students of all disciplines in the GDR, there was also an Institute for Marxism–Leninism at the school. It later also had to take over the scientific staff, lecturers and professors' ongoing ideological training.
After Germany's Reunification
At the end of the German Democratic Republic, the academic system of Eastern Germany was absorbed by the West German system. Chemnitz University of Technology was actively supported to remain as a third university in Saxony besides University of Leipzig and TU Dresden. In 1992, the former Pädagogische Hochschule Zwickau was incorporated and the university was renamed Technische Universität Chemnitz-Zwickau. With the establishment of the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration (1993) and the Faculty of Humanities (1994), the university's profile shifted from technical to a more comprehensive university. In 1997, another renaming took place and the institution received its current name, Chemnitz University of Technology. In September of the same year, the Saxon state government made the decision to end elementary school teacher training in Chemnitz. As of the winter semester 1999/2000, no more students were enrolled in the teacher training programs. The state government made the decision to center teacher training in Leipzig and Dresden. These decisions were accompanied by massive protests from the ranks of the students but also from the Faculty of Humanities.
In 2009, when the Faculty of Behavioural and Social Sciences was spun off from the Faculty of Humanities, the university consisted of 159 professorships spread across eight faculties. With more than 9,000 students, Chemnitz University of Technology is the third largest university in Saxony after the University of Leipzig and the TU Dresden.
As part of the Excellence Initiative of the German federal and state governments, the Cluster of Excellence MERGE – Technology Fusion for Multifunctional Lightweight Structures was funded at the university until 2017. After the additional funding expired on 31 October 2019, MERGE became a central institution of the university.
Teacher education returned to the university with the establishment of the Centre for Teacher Training in 2013 as a central institution for training elementary school teachers. In 2014, the Centre for Knowledge and Technology Transfer was founded as a central institution of Chemnitz University of Technology.
Chemnitz University of Technology successfully participated in both rounds of the Female Professors Program, which is funded by the federal and state governments. In 2019, the university participated in the Female Professors Program for the third time and was the only university in Saxony to receive the "Equality Excellent" rating.
Since April 2019, the university has received funding from the program WIR! – Change through Innovation in the Region. Up to 15 million euros are available for the two joint projects – Smart Rail Connectivity-Campus and SmartERZ. The aim of the Smart Rail Connectivity-Campus is to establish a research campus in Annaberg-Buchholz for research into autonomous train traffic.
Also in 2019, Chemnitz University of Technology received the Award for University Communication for its overall communicative concept and its advocacy against violence and xenophobia following the racist riots in Chemnitz in 2018.
Organization and Administration
Faculties The university is organised into the following eight faculties: Faculty of Computer Science Faculty of Economics and Business Administration Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Information Technology Faculty of Mathematics Faculty of Mechanical Engineering Faculty of Natural Sciences Faculty of Humanities Faculty of Behavioural and Social Sciences
Central Institutions
Cluster of Excellence MERGE Saxony's Centre for Teaching and Learning University Library Foreign Language Centre Internationales Universitätszentrum Centre for Young Scientists Centre for Knowledge and Technology Transfer Research Centre MAIN International Office University Computer Centre Centre for Teacher Training Centre for Sports and Health Promotion
An-Institutes
Cetex Institute for Textile and Processing Machines gemeinnützige GmbH Institute of Mechatronics e.V. Saxony Textile Research Institute e.V. TUCed – An-Institut für Transfer und Weiterbildung GmbH Center for Criminological Research Saxony
Campus Chemnitz University of Technology's growth led it to have buildings in various parts of Chemnitz. The campus on Reichenhainer Staße is the main campus. There are currently four parts of the university:
Campus at Straße der Nationen 62 The campus at Straße der Nationen 62 is in the center of Chemnitz across from the bus station. This includes the buildings at Straße der Nationen 62 (the Böttcher Building), Bahnhofstraße 8 (Patent Information Center), Carolastraße 8 (Department of Human Resources, Department of Budget and Economics), and the Alte Aktienspinnerei (University Library and University Archives).
Eduard-Theodor-Böttcher-Bau The Böttcher-Bau or Böttcher Building is the main and oldest building at Chemnitz University of Technology. The natural stone facade of the building consists of granite, porphyry, and sandstone elements. The most prominent part of the historical building is the four-meter long and 21-meter high facade. Behind the main entrance doors there is a vestibule with a historical cross vault. After the staircase, the student secretariat is located to the right.
This building is home to the university administration (President and Vice-Presidents' offices, office of the chancellor, some departments), the University Computer Centre as well as the Faculty of Computer Science and the Institute of Chemistry. Furthermore, the Böttcher-Bau is home to a cafeteria and a canteen which are operated by the Studentenwerk Chemnitz-Zwickau. Also located in this building is part of the TUClab, Chemnitz University of Technology's start-up support network.
The Böttcher Building, whose cornerstone was laid on 2 September 1875, was named after Professor Eduard Theodor Böttcher (1829–1893). Böttcher was a professor of mechanics and for many years the director of the Royal Higher Industrial School in Chemnitz. The laboratory building facing the railroad station was handed over as early as 1876. The busts of Jöns Jakob Berzelius and Alexander von Humboldt in the staircase there also date from this time. On 16 October 1877, this building was consecrated as the State Technical School. Under this collective name, it united the Higher School of Trades, the School of Construction Trades, the School of Master Craftsmen and the School of Trades Marks. The building, which was equipped according to the most modern standards and in which 612 students were taught at the time, had 105 rooms with a total area of 6,613 square meters. Since the 150th anniversary of engineering education in 1986, the main building at the university has borne the name "Eduard-Theodor-Böttcher-Bau". In 1986, a sculpture of Böttcher by the Karl-Marx-Stadt artist Frank Diettrich was also unveiled in front of the Senate Hall on the second floor in the central part of the building.
On the front exterior façade of the building, three pairs of figures above the large main entrances indicate the sciences that were taught in the building at the time: Mathematics and Physics, Textile Industry and Chemical Engineering, and Mechanical and Civil Engineering.
In addition, the portrait heads of famous representatives of the sciences are in high relief in the central section. Pictured are:
Galileo Galilei (1564–1642) Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz (1646–1716) Jöns Jakob Berzelius (1779–1848) Leonhard Euler (1707–1783) Gaspard Monge (1746–1818) James Watt (1736–1819) Karl Karmarsch (1803–1879)
At the height of the former assembly hall windows, two statues can be seen on the sides of the central section. The left figure, equipped with a cogwheel and compasses, symbolizes technology. The right statue represents science – reinforced by the book and the lecturing posture. All portraits and the two statues were modeled by sculptor Anton Händler, who taught at the Chemnitz Gewerbzeichenschule.
On the roof of the building, directly above the portraits on the fourth floor, there is a parapet wall. At the time, it bore the words "Königliche Technische Lehranstalten" (Royal Technical Schools), which have since been replaced by the words "Technische Universität" (University of Technology). The picture is rounded off by two lions representing the Saxon coat of arms decorated with a golden crown.