Free University Berlin

FU Berlin – © Thoka / Freie Universität

The Free University (FU) Berlin is the largest university in Berlin and one of the largest in Germany. It ranks among the so-called elite universities in the country. The FU is one of the top educational addresses in the country and offers an internationally unique spectrum of humanistic study subjects. The FU Berlin was founded in 1948 by students and scientists with the support of the American Allied Forces and local politicians in the green south-westerly part of the city, in Dahlem. It came into being as a result of the persecution of students disagreeing with the political system at the former university ‘Unter den Linden’ in the Soviet-occupied sector of the divided city. Students and scientists needed a place, where they could work and study free from political supervision - and that is why the FU Berlin still bears the inscription ‘Truth, Justice, Freedom’ in its seal to this day. In order to establish itself both academically and intellectually within the educational community, the FU began to create links with institutions around the world from its ‘insular’ base in the west of Berlin. Necessity soon turned into strategy with much success: The FU currently maintains partnerships with over 130 scientific organisations around the world. International researchers see the Free University Berlin as a top-address, and around 600 foreign scientists contribute towards its broad offering in terms of research and education. Of the around 31,000 students in over 100 study courses, approximately 16 percent hail from foreign countries.