TUD opens its doors to more than 6,000 first-year students: All-time high in international students and three-year high in STEM subjects

On October 8, 2026, TUD Dresden University of Technology greeted its new students for the 2026–27 academic year at the official welcome ceremony held in the Auditorium Center. A total of 6,226 students have enrolled in their first semester at TUD. Among them are 1,590 international first-year students from 104 countries.

Regarding applications from abroad, TUD has reached an all-time high of 12,513 international applicants — up from 6,852 in the 2022/23 winter semester (WS). Applications in the fields of mathematics and natural sciences as well as engineering sciences are also showing a steady increase: With 15,016 applications, the number exceeds the figures recorded for the previous two years, which were 13,465 (2025/26 WS) and 12,995 (2024/25 WS). As students are still able to enroll until the end of the month, we will only be able to give the final figures to the State Office for Statistics on November 1.

“One of the most rewarding tasks of university leadership is welcoming new students into the university community,” said TUD Rector Prof. Ursula M. Staudinger. “With this year’s motto, ‘Sustainability,’ we are drawing attention to one of our central areas of activity and one of the most pressing challenges of our time. As a University of Excellence, we contribute to solving this challenge by combining cutting-edge research across disciplinary boundaries with the transfer of knowledge to business and society. The spectrum ranges from resource-efficient construction and a greenhouse gas-neutral circular economy to sustainable mobility and energy systems as well as the electronics of the future.”

The continued development of the degree programs and the associated renaming of the degree programs Circular Economy and Resource Efficiency and Sustainable Electronics and Photonics also fit perfectly into this year’s motto.

“We are particularly pleased with the very high level of interest from international applicants this semester,” says Prof. Niels Modler, Vice-Rector Academic Affairs Across the Life Course. “Following a steady increase over the previous years, we have now reached an all-time high this semester. Equally encouraging is the continuously growing interest in our STEM degree programs. Both developments show that: TUD’s eclectic degree programs are attractive well beyond state borders, and as a technical university, we are garnering a multitude of interested young people, particularly for our STEM subjects.”

New for the current winter semester

For the 2026/27 winter semester, TUD is expanding its range of degree programs: A new English-language Master's degree program in Mobility Systems is being introduced. In addition, existing degree programs have been further developed or realigned. For example, the Master's degree program in Geoinformatics, now taught in English, replaces the previous German-language Master's degree program in Geoinformation Technologies. In total, students at TUD can choose from more than 120 degree programs leading to Bachelor’s, Diplom,  and Master’s degrees, or even State Examinations.

Contact:

TUD Press Office
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