Research and Teaching at the University of Bonn

The University of Bonn is one of eleven Universities of Excellence in Germany with eight Clusters of Excellence - more than any other university in Germany. Our seven faculties cover a broad range of disciplines. These strong disciplines are supplemented by six cross-faculty, interdisciplinary “Transdisciplinary Research Areas” (TRAs) that create spaces for exploration and innovation where key scientific, technological and social challenges are addressed.

Transdisciplinary Research Profile

The research profile of our University of Excellence is based on our six Transdisciplinary Research Areas (TRAs), and is further strengthened by six Clusters of Excellence, countless collaborative projects and outstanding researchers.

TRAs and Research Profile

Frau Professor Margherita Disertori vom Hausdorf Center for Mathematics hält eine Mathematikvorlesung vor Studierenden.

Teaching Profile

We aim to create a passion for science in young people and help them develop their individual professional and personal skills as best possible. The overall orientation of study and teaching at the University is based on ten principles.

Study and Teaching Principles

Researchers and Teachers

The University provides a range of services to help increase the time available for research and teaching. These range from providing advice on submitting applications and handling third-party funded projects, all the way to consulting on teaching methods. Learn about our Welcome Center and funding lines for international exchange, among other things.

Services Offered

Early-Career Researchers

We want to give talented early-career researchers the opportunity to perform independent research and help them achieve their goals both within and outside academia. The Argelander Program provides orientation, cross-disciplinary training and funding for emerging leaders.

The Argelander Program

Knowledge and Technology Transfer

Through knowledge transfer, we ensure that our research reaches and benefits various sectors, while our technology transfer efforts help move innovative ideas into practical use. Our outreach programs further extend these contributions, engaging with the community to share insights and drive positive change.

Transfer

Quality Assurance

Academic integrity and high quality teaching are our top priorities. Learn about our quality assurance measures, Guidelines for Safeguarding Good Research Practice and your contact persons.

Quality Research and Teaching

Latest Research and Teaching News

Droughts and Floods Attract Little Media Attention

Three factors—spectacular images, a high death toll and strong personal ties—make it more likely that the media in one country will report on a natural disaster in another, according to a study by the University of Bonn, the University of Warwick and Imperial College London, which has now been published in the journal “Nature Human Behaviour.” The data also shows that droughts and flooding—two of the biggest effects of climate change—are considered particularly un-newsworthy, which could be one explanation for why many people are still underestimating the impact of the greenhouse effect.

Chemical Fingerprints Reveal Hidden Histories of Massive Stars

Many massive stars were once part of binary systems, but their exciting past is often lost – at least it was so far. A new study at the University of Bonn and at the Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics has now found a new method to identify stars that once gained mass from a companion – stars that now appear as single objects but carry the chemical scars of their binary youth. Using a unique “chemical fingerprint” – independent of specific evolutionary models – they were able to reconstruct the binary histories of massive stars. The method has already reclassified the well-studied star γ Columbae as a former mass gainer – challenging long-held assumptions about its origin– and offered new insight into Supernova SN 1987A’s progenitor. The findings have now been published in “Nature Astronomy.”

Good news, false expectations? How people assess potential returns in the stock market

A study involving the Cluster of Excellence ECONtribute at the Universities of Bonn and Cologne demonstrates that not only retail investors but also financial professionals often assess the potential returns on the stock market differently to what standard models of financial economics predict. This is due to differing ideas about how news on companies affects future stock returns. The study, entitled “Mental Models of the Stock Market,” has been published in the prestigious Quarterly Journal of Economics.

Hunting for the Axion with a Huge Magnet

The search for an as-yet undiscovered elementary particle has been given fresh momentum as the German Research Foundation (DFG) has now greenlit the construction of a special €6 million magnet system in the Color meets Flavor Cluster of Excellence at the University of Bonn, University of Siegen and TU Dortmund University. Dubbed “BabyIAXO,” it is being built to hunt for the axion, a hitherto undetected elementary particle that could unlock one of the biggest unsolved mysteries in particle physics.

Clusters of Excellence

200+

Degree Programs

699

Professors

Our Research Profile

The research profile of our University of Excellence is defined by six Transdisciplinary Research Areas (TRAs), each of which has at least one Cluster of Excellence at its core. The TRAs focus our research on key future scientific, technological and social issues. Outstanding researchers, strong disciplines and a cooperative research culture have always formed the basis of our research profile.

Transdisciplinary Research Areas

The six Transdisciplinary Research Areas (TRAs) at the University of Bonn create spaces for innovation in research and teaching.

Excellence Strategy

“We invest in people. We foster networks. We create impact.” Our strategy for excellence in research and teaching.

Find out more

Clusters of Excellence

The University of Bonn has six Clusters of Excellence — eight as of January 2026 — more than any other university in Germany.

Our Clusters

Support of Early-Career Researchers

We offer many support services for doctoral students and postdocs to promote early independent research.

Argelander Program

Research Networks

Innovative top-level research in many national and international partnerships and collaborative projects sets us apart.

Collaborative Research

Outstanding Researchers

The outstanding research performed by our researchers is shown by the many awards that have been received.

Awards and Prizes