About the university
Universitätsplatz (Photo: Norbert Kaltwaßer)
Creating knowledge. Since 1502
Education and research with a 500-year-old tradition: Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg (MLU) offers a wide range of academic subjects in the areas of humanities, social sciences, natural sciences and medicine. The oldest and largest university in Saxony-Anhalt was created in 1817 when the University of Wittenberg (founded in 1502) merged with Friedrichs University Halle (founded in 1694). Today the university has around 20,000 students and 340 professors.
MLU’s academic profile is shaped by the three profile lines Transformation, Sustainability, and Knowledge Cultures and Education. Through its four core research areas, the university addresses key academic and societal challenges of the present and the future: Plurality, Participation and Enlightenment; Health and Society in Transformation; and, under the umbrella of Building Blocks of the Future, the two core research areas From Plants to Macromolecules and From Mineral Raw Materials to Nanoelectronics.
Agricultural sciences also play a leading role and Halle’s university bears sole responsibility in Saxony-Anhalt for developing this academic profile. The Faculty of Medicine focuses on epidemiology, health and nursing research and research on signal transmission. Here nursing scientists conduct research on an equal footing with physicians. The Dorothea Erxleben Learning Centre is one of the largest teaching clinics for prospective medical professionals. In addition to its main academic focuses, the university offers a range of minor subjects, some of which are only offered in Germany at MLU.
As a member of the Central German University Alliance Halle-Jena-Leipzig, MLU cooperates closely with other universities, and with external research institutes and industries. This is visible at a local level on the Weinberg Campus, the second largest technology park in Eastern Germany. All of the university’s natural science institutes are concentrated here. They work in partnership with companies and major German research institutes, such as the Max Planck Society and the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft. Halle’s university has a broad-reaching network of partner universities throughout the world.
In addition to the Weinberg Campus, MLU has three other main locations. The centrally located University Square is one of the most beautiful university squares in Europe and it is a site in Halle that is steeped in tradition. Many institutes focusing on the humanities and social sciences are located on the new Steintor Campus. Educationalists and theologians teach, study and conduct research at the Francke Foundations.
Facts and figures (As per 31 Ocotober 2025)
University
Professorships: 348
Junior professorships: 22
Students: 18,789
Foreign students: 1,754
Employees (excl. Faculty of Medicine): 2,230*
Trainees (excl. Faculty of Medicine): 33*
Externally-funded employees (excl. Faculty of Medicine): 690*
*(as per 1 december 2025)
University Medicine Halle
Facilities (clinics, institutes, etc.): 100*
Faculty of Medicine employees: 880*
Externally-funded employees: 348*
University hospital employees: 4,935 and 759 trainees*
*(as per 1 december 2025)
State grants for research and teaching
University excl. Faculty of Medicine: 193,910,000 euros*
Faculty of Medicine: 77,810,000 euros*
*(as per 31 december 2025)
Further current figures can be found in the e-paper version of the ‘scientia halensis’ yearbook on pages 92 to 97.