Brandenburg University of Technology

Brandenburg University of Technology
The Brandenburg University of Technology Cottbus–Senftenberg (BTU) was founded in 1991 and is a technical university in Brandenburg, Germany with campuses in Cottbus and Senftenberg. The university has 185 professors, 640 additional academic staff and more than 7,000 students, of which 2,350 are of foreign origin from more than 100 nations.
History
The university was a school for construction engineering in the former GDR starting in 1954. After German reunification, the school became a Technical University and was later renamed "Brandenburg Technical University" in 1994. In the following years, the university underwent major construction efforts and the number of students continued to grow. In February 2013 the Landtag of Brandenburg decided to merge the BTU and the Hochschule Lausitz on 1 July 2013 to found the new university Brandenburgische Technische Universität Cottbus-Senftenberg (abbreviated BTU). Today, the university has 7,280 students, 2,190 of whom come from abroad.
Structure
The university is separated into six faculties (Fakultäten) each of them having a focus on certain study and research areas. Each faculty is further subdivided into institutes (Institute). The following faculties exist:
Faculty 1: Mathematics, Computer Science, Physics, Electrical Engineering and Information Technology
Faculty 2: Environment and Natural Sciences
Faculty 3: Mechanical Engineering, Electrical and Energy Systems
Faculty 4: Social Work, Health Care and Music
Faculty 5: Business, Law and Social Sciences
Faculty 6: Architecture, Civil Engineering and Urban Planning
Library
The new library was opened in the year 2004 and is called Informations-, Kommunikations- und Medienzentrum (IKMZ). It was designed by the famous architects Herzog & de Meuron.
Study
Academic year
Like for most universities in Germany, the academic year at BTU is divided into two semesters. The winter term (Wintersemester) is the official beginning of the academic year and lasts from 1 October to 31 March. The summer term (Sommersemester) lasts from 1 April to 30 September. The teaching takes place in only 15 weeks per semester and is followed by an examination period (Prüfungszeitraum) where usually no lectures are held.
Study programmes
In the winter semester 2022/23, around 6,800 students were enrolled at BTU Cottbus-Senftenberg. The proportion of students in STEM subjects is consistently strong at 65%. 40% of the students come from abroad from over 120 different countries. The proportion of women in the student body is 43%.
With a few exceptions, the degree programmes at BTU Cottbus-Senftenberg are open-admission, i.e. without a numerus clausus (NC). Application is possible for all degree programmes in the winter semester, and for some Master's and Bachelor's programmes also in the summer semester.
Teaching language
German is the teaching language for the majority of the degree programmes. A total of 16 study programmes (one Bachelor, eleven Master, four Ph.D.) are offered in English:
Artificial Intelligence (Master)
Biotechnology (Master)
Cyber Security (Master)
Cognitive and Dependable Systems (Ph.D.)
Environmental and Resource Management (Bachelor/Master/Ph.D.)
Euro Hydroinformatics and Water Management (Master)
Heritage Conservation and Site Management (Master)
Heritage Studies (Ph.D.)
Physics (Master)
Power Engineering (Master/Ph.D.)
Transfers-Fluids-Materials in Aeronautical and Space Applications (Master)
Urban Design – Revitalization of Historic City Districts (Master)
World Heritage Studies (Master)
Tuition and Fees
All students, regardless if German or non-German, need to pay a fee of approximately 165 Euro per semester. This fee used to be 321.03 Euro and included a student transit pass (Semesterticket) which allowed students to travel with all public transportation services in the states Berlin and Brandenburg for free. Free use of regional express train (RE 18) to Dresden-Neustadt was also included. However, with the introduction of the Deutschlandticket (49-Euro-Ticket) the Semesterticket is no longer available and students are encouraged to purchase their own Deutschlandticket. Unlike some federal-states of Germany, there is no further fee collected as the parliament of the federal-state Brandenburg decided not to introduce further study fees (Studiengebühr).
Preparation programmes
The orientation study College+ is a study preparation programme which supports prospective students in their search for a degree programme that matches their inclinations and abilities. In two semesters, they get to know studying at the university and the variety of degree programmes at BTU Cottbus-Senftenberg.
The BTU Cottbus-Senftenberg offers programmes for prospective students to acquire the university entrance qualification in the state of Brandenburg and language qualification.
ESiSt – Successful Entry into Higher Education for International Students in Brandenburg
Bridge to Studies
Springboard Uni-German with TestDaF
International Partnerships
The BTU has a worldwide network of partner universities and allows students to take part in European Erasmus Programme or overseas programmes such as STUDEXA or
GE4. Students who want to participate in an exchange programme do not need to pay the tuition fee of the hosting university.
Double degrees and joint degrees with partner universities
BTU Cottbus-Senftenberg offers nine degree programmes with double degrees or joint degrees with universities worldwide.
Study programmes with double degrees:
Architecture (M.Sc.)
Environmental and Resource Management (M.Sc.)
Power Engineering (M.Sc.)
Social Work (B.A.)
Urban Design – Revitalisation of Historic City Districts (M.Sc.)
Lightweight Construction and Materials Technology (M.Sc.)
World Heritage Studies (M.A.)
Joint degree programmes with one or more partner universities:
Heritage Conservation and Site Management (M.A.)
Euro Hydroinformatics and Water Management (ERASMUS Mundus programme) (M.Sc.)
Transfers-Fluids-Materials in Aeronautical and Space Applications (M.Sc.)
Student life
The BTU has several facilities for the students comfortableness and facilitation, including but not limited to Cafeteria, restaurant, football yard, career center, etc.
Research
The BTU is a research-oriented university with a focus on both basic and applied research. As a small technical university in Lusatia, the BTU faces up to its responsibility to act as an engine of innovation and internationalisation in the region and thus to exert a positive influence on the current structural change in Lusatia. The BTU is also active internationally with its research foci and transfers its local solution approaches to an international level.
The profile-formed research fields at BTU Cottbus-Senftenberg are:
Global change und transformation processes
Energy Reform and Decarbonization
Health and Life Sciences
Artificial Intelligence and Sensorics
Transfer of knowledge and technology
The BTU sees itself with its research portfolio in regional technology and knowledge transfer. The "Central Technology Transfer" is carried out by the "Knowledge and Technology Transfer" department, which is attached to a vice-president. This department consists of the pillars Technology Transfer Office, Patents/Licences and the Career Centre and represents the original transfer area. The annual Transfer Day serves to present current results from the BTU. People from science and industry meet here to exchange ideas. The largest fair for academic specialists in the state of Brandenburg ("campus-x-change") takes place on the central campus of the BTU in Cottbus and aims to find internships, student trainee positions, final theses and graduate positions. A transfer database provides an overview of the BTU subject areas.
The BTU has developed a joint transfer strategy with the Technical University of Wildau. The declared aim of both universities is to actively promote networking with industry in the state of Brandenburg. In particular, the transfer project "Innovation Hub 13", which is funded by the BMBF for the years 2018 to 2022 as part of the "Innovative University" funding initiative, is a central component of these efforts. The project focuses on new transfer paths, but also on improved knowledge management via the joint platform "Innovation Hub 13".
The "Joint Lab Reliable Sensor Networks" is a joint facility of the Institute of Computer Science, the BTU Cottbus-Senftenberg as a whole and the Leibniz Institute for Innovative Microelectronics (IHP), in which researchers, students and doctoral candidates from the various institutions are to engage in a mutual exchange.
References
External links
Buildings and structures in Cottbus
Universities and colleges established in 1991
1991 establishments in Germany
Universities and colleges formed by merger in Germany
Universities and colleges in Brandenburg
Technical universities and colleges in Germany