Want to take part in world-class research at a major university or tap into your own potential in a vibrant community?
Study in an international network as a global citizen or focus on pressing local challenges?
Delve deep into one subject down to the last detail or discover the fascinating multitude of academic topics and theories?
At JGU, you can have it all, because these different worlds don’t collide – they coalesce. At JGU, you study in a way that works for you and pick up what knowledge you need you along the way.
From acquiring knowledge and learning about recent research achievements in the lecture hall to discussing topics and developing new questions with classmates in a seminar room – our academic community is always focused on finding the limitations to our knowledge in order to step beyond them.
Sometimes, you will follow in the footsteps of other researchers, and sometimes you will focus on setting your own emphasis to reach individual goals.
From deciding on your degree program to selecting a specialization over the course of your studies – JGU will accompany you on the path you choose!
Modular degree programs, hybrid courses, and online supplementary material boost flexibility for adapting the degree plan to meet your needs and goals.
Learn from internationally renowned scientists, follow up on your own research questions,and immerse yourself in the details of your subject until you earn your degree, your doctorate, or more advanced qualifications – research and teaching are two sides of the same coin at our university.
With research-oriented degree programs and a variety of options for earning further academic qualifications, JGU encourages people to get to the heart of the matter using scientific methods and to question things previously taken for granted.
Academic education and non-university career options are not contradictory at JGU. Anyone who earns an academic degree here gains insights into a range of possible applications and typical professional fields corresponding to their program of study. In addition, our degree programs teach you not only subject-specific content relevant for a future career, but also interdisciplinary soft and future skills, which will help you along whichever career path you choose.
Research and academia have a long tradition in Mainz.
Since its founding in 1477 and reopening in May of 1946 under its current name, Johannes Gutenberg University has remained committed to the spirit of its famous namesake – and to what his epoch-making invention made possible: spreading and implementing innovative ideas, generating knowledge, continuing to develop our society with a critical view of historical events and with regard to cultural diversity, and crossing boundaries.
JGU earns worldwide acknowledgement of its achievements in academia and the arts, in research and teaching, as well as its in-depth interactions with politics, commerce, and society.
Physicists’ search for the secrets of matter and chemists’ search for revolutionary sustainable materials, life science research on the development of new vaccines, insights from the social and cultural sciences on migration and inequality as well as social and cultural shifts – all of these are united by the overarching goal of changing and influencing the future through research in order to improve people’s living conditions.
As student in Mainz, you are part of a vibrant campus community located in the middle of the Rhine-Main metropolitan region. Short distances and a diverse student atmosphere characterize student life – at the university and in Mainz, the capital of the state of Rhineland-Palatinate.
Cosmopolitanism and savoir-vivre distinguish this region, which has been a cultural melting pot for thousands of years. Whether Fastnacht, Johannisfest, or Marktfrühstück – in Mainz, you live and celebrate life together. There are plenty of new things to explore and ways to unwind in this metropolitan region, with Frankfurt, Wiesbaden and Darmstadt at your doorstep, excellent public transport that will take you wherever you want to go and impressive natural scenery all around.
JGU is your gateway to the world: On campus – whether in Mainz or in Germersheim – people from over 120 different countries and even more languages and cultures come into contact. Thanks to collaborative alliances and exchange programs with partner institutions across the world, JGU is part of a large international community.
JGU’s degree programs are connected with its European partners, paving the way for a European university and serving as a model for other universities. From here, you can head out into your personal educational adventure – whichever subject you choose. JGU is a member of FORTHEM – an alliance of nine European universities with the goal of improving student and employee mobility and simplifying new forms of collaboration.
Studying and researching together, getting to know and understanding cultures, making friends around the globe and across faculties – at JGU, we get to know each other.
It is the only German university of its size with nearly all of its institutions on a central campus close to the city center. The campus combines an optimal (and digital) infrastructure for learning with varied and diverse options for enjoying leisure time. You will find teaching and research buildings, student dorms, daycare centers, sports facilities and cafés alongside lecture halls and rehearsal and exhibition spaces.
Whether you retreat to a library to study, take a break in a nearby café or go for a walk in the botanic garden between lectures; whether you take part in a theater group or practice with the choir, join a university sports course or support your fellow students in a project – your next stop is always only a few steps away on the Gutenberg campus!
The university locations beyond the main campus – at the Mainz University Medical Center or on the Germersheim campus – are also characterized by short distances, easy accessibility, and an excellent infrastructure.
From the natural and social sciences to the humanities, media, medicine and economics to the arts, music, and sports – with its 75 subjects and over 240 degree programs, JGU has something for everyone. As a comprehensive university, JGU covers nearly the entire academic spectrum with its ten faculties, the Mainz Academy of Fine Arts and the Mainz School of Music.
You will profit from a variety of possible combinations and interdisciplinary approaches in many subjects, especially in the humanities, in economics, and in the cultural and social sciences (e.g., in the two-subject bachelor’s degree program and in the teacher education programs).
In our international and cooperative degree programs (e.g., the Rhine-Main Universities alliance RMU), you can also study at different higher education institutions both in Germany and abroad, getting to know different ways of studying a subject and earning multinational degrees (double or joint degree ).
More than 30,000 students and employees from over 120 nations as well as 1,000 collaborations with more than 500 partner universities across the world go to show that JGU is culturally diverse. It embodies the European ideals of freedom, equality, and justice, and views itself as a place of learning and cutting-edge research.
At JGU, you have many opportunities to study abroad during your degree program – but your home campus also already hosts students and teaching staff from every continent. More than 4,000 international students add to JGU’s cosmopolitan flair – especially on our Germersheim campus.
Since its reopening, JGU has upheld its German-French roots and a close relationship to higher education institutions in France, especially to the Université de Bourgogne in Dijon.
As a European university in the FORTHEM alliance, JGU is continually working on the expansion of exchange opportunities, collaboration, and mobility within the EU – with the goal of establishing a European campus.
Getting your degree just means lectures, seminars, and exams? Not here!
JGU offers numerous supplementary programs and qualifications, which round out your personality, your transcript, and your CV.
- Learn foreign languages at the ISSK
- Look beyond your subject of study with the studium generale
- Work on interdisciplinary topics in the Q+ study program
At JGU, there’s something for everybody – also outside of the lecture hall.
- Join a theater group
- Sing in the university choir or play in the orchestra
- Attend extracurricular courses
- Co-produce CampusTV and Campusradio
- Try out one of the over 70 courses offered by University Sports (from aikido to yoga)
- Join one of the political, social, or cultural university groups
- Advocate for student issues
- And much more
Studying at JGU means more than simply acquiring subject-specific knowledge and academic degrees. Studying here means qualifying and educating yourself in order to be able to find your position in a profession and in society. Our degree programs offer you the space to develop in your discipline and learn practical skills for your future profession along the way. You will collect valuable experience and gain new insights by taking part in practical projects, internships, and field trips.
JGU’s Career Service will support you throughout your time here with programming and advice related to career orientation and the transition to a profession. It offers opportunities to
- work out your career goals and perspectives in personal advising sessions,
- get to know potential employers at job and career fairs,
- research internships and job advertisements on the job portal, or
- have professionals look over your CV and application materials.
At JGU, you will be prepared for your post-university life – whether your goals lie in academia or beyond. The location of Mainz in the economically strong Rhine-Main metropolitan region, the university’s connections to regional employers, and JGU’s alumni networks offer ideal conditions and the right contacts.
Whether you spend only one semester with us or plan to complete an entire degree program here: At JGU, you should feel looked after. From your choice of degree and application to your course sequence, from a semester abroad and exam registration all the way to earning your degree and transitioning to a profession – JGU accompanies you throughout your entire student lifecycle with extensive professional service and advising options so you can focus on the essentials.
For the continuous betterment of our teaching, we strive to continuously evolve – with respect to our degree programs, our learning opportunities, and our teaching strategy. Innovative academic teaching, new methods of online and hybrid learning, as well as engaged teaching staff who bring current research into lecture halls, seminar rooms, and laboratories – this is what drives us. This is what we work for in our faculties, departments, and projects. JGU has received multiple awards for its successes in teaching organization and teaching, such as the Genius Loci award for excellence in teaching (link in German).
