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Research Profile: Top-Level Research

The University of Bonn has stood for top-level research for over 200 years. The founding professors already saw Bonn as a research university aimed at answering scientific, social and technological questions. Researchers, teachers and early-career researchers all benefit from this today, taking advantage of established German and global networks and strong scientific and social partnerships—with measurable effect.

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© Volker Lannert/Uni Bonn

Transdisciplinary Research

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

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© Volker Lannert/HCM

Excellence in Research and Teaching

“We invest in people. We foster networks. We create impact.” We follow this strategy to create the ideal environment for creative scientific work by outstanding researchers that extends beyond our six Clusters of Excellence and to promote talented researchers at all career levels.

The Best Minds

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

Cooperative Research Culture

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

Diverse Appointments

The diversity of our externally funded professorships is a sign of our close cooperation with economy and society. 

What sets our research profile apart?

01.

Excellence

The University of Bonn is one of eleven German Universities of Excellence and the only university with six Clusters of Excellence. Recent decades have seen us produce more Nobel Prize and Fields Medal winners than any other German university.

02.

Networked

Embedded in the UN city of Bonn and a region of cutting-edge research, the University of Bonn is one of the leading research-oriented universities in Germany.

03.

Transdisciplinary

Our seven faculties cover a broad range of disciplines. This strong range of disciplines is supplemented by six cross-faculty, interdisciplinary “Transdisciplinary Research Areas” (TRAs) that create areas for exploration and innovation to facilitate academic exchange.

04.

Comprehensive Support

Our goal is to create the ideal conditions for internationally networked research to attract and develop the best researchers. Our Argelander Program for Early-Career Researchers offers comprehensive support to promote early independent research.

Transdisciplinary Research Areas

Transdisciplinary Research Areas (TRAs) focus our research on key scientific, technological and social issues of the future and create areas for exploration and innovation.

Mathematics, Modelling and Simulation of Complex Systems

How do complex systems actually work?  Interaction of mathematical modelling, classical observational methods, data simulation and creative spirit.

Building Blocks of Matter and Fundamental Interactions

How do the building blocks of matter interact? How do complex structures emerge at the different length scales of nature? Find out more about our research.

Life and Health

Understanding the complexity of life - developing new strategies for health.
Read more about TRA Life and Health. 

Individuals, Institutions and Societies

Complex relationships between the individual, institutions and societies – developing new views of micro- and macrophenomena.

Past Worlds and Modern Questions. Cultures Across Time and Space

We foster and network research on the preconditions and conditions of the emergence of modern societies as well as on negotiation processes of heritage.

Technology and Innovation for Sustainable Futures

The TRA Sustainable Futures researches institutional, science- and technology-based innovations in the field of sustainability.

Latest Research and Teaching News
“Zukunft auf dem Teller”: New education project launched on innovations in the world of nutrition
“Zukunft auf dem Teller” is the name chosen for the new education project jointly-run by LizzyNet and Biology Didactics at the University of Bonn to introduce schoolchildren to sustainable approaches in food production. Running for a period of 2 years, the measure is receiving financial backing from the Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt and the Stiftung Umwelt und Entwicklung Nordrhein-Westfalen.
ENTRANCE regional conference on research cooperation with China at the University of Bonn
The 2025 ENTRANCE Regional Conference, held February 20-21 at the University of Bonn, attracted a host of experts from various universities and research organizations. The main topics were Chinese research, IT and data security, and medical research cooperation.
Potential target for MS therapy discovered
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic inflammatory disease of the central nervous system caused by the immune system. B cells, which are a type of white blood cell, play a role in the development of MS and are thus a target for therapies. Researchers at the University Hospital Bonn (UKB), the University of Bonn and the FAU Erlangen-Nuremberg identified the membrane protein MLC1 as a potential target antigen in MS. To do this, the team used a novel combination of modern techniques. The results of the work have now been published in the renowned journal “Neurology Neuroimmunology & Neuroinflammation”.
AI Enhances Brain Imaging
How can nerve pathways in the brain be visualized to improve the planning of complex surgeries? A research team from the Lamarr Institute and the University of Bonn, in collaboration with the Translational Neuroimaging Group at the Departments of Neuroradiology and Epileptology at the University Hospital Bonn (UKB), has investigated an AI-powered method that makes these reconstructions more precise. The study, recently published in NeuroImage: Clinical, could ultimately help make neurosurgical procedures safer.
Saving energy is "in", even neurons are joining in
Nerve cells have amazing strategies to save energy and still perform the most important of their tasks. Researchers from the University Hospital Bonn (UKB) and the University of Bonn as well as the University Medical Center Göttingen found that the neuronal energy conservation program determines the location and number of messenger RNA (mRNA) and proteins, and differs depending on the length, longevity and other properties of the respective molecule. The work has now been published in the journal "Nature Communications".
Faculty of Medicine Awards Honorary Doctorate to Sharon Lewin
The Faculty of Medicine at the University of Bonn has conferred an honorary doctorate on the illustrious researcher Professor Sharon Lewin. The Director of the Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity and the Cumming Global Centre for Pandemic Therapeutics, Professor Lewin is also a Laureate Professor of Medicine at the University of Melbourne in Australia and collaborates with the University Hospital Bonn. She is being recognized for her exceptional research on the international stage and her groundbreaking work in the field of HIV research in particular.
Carbohydrate Cravings in Depression
Depression affects 280 million people worldwide. The mental illness has been proven to lead to changes in eating behavior. Researchers at the University Hospital Bonn (UKB), the University of Bonn and the University Hospital Tübingen have discovered that although patients with depression generally have less appetite, they prefer carbohydrate-rich foods. The results have now been published in the journal "Psychological Medicine".
Simon Stellmer receives ERC Proof of Concept Grant
Professor Simon Stellmer,  a member of the Cluster of Excellence ML4Q, receives a ‘Proof of Concept Grant’ from the European Research Council (ERC) for his project „GyroRevolutionPlus“. With the funding of €150,000 for up to 18 months, the physicist will continue to prepare his research results from previous ERC projects for commercial application. This is the second time that Professor Stellmer has been successful in this funding program after having received a grant for his previous project ‘GyroRevolution’ in 2023. The precision instruments he and his team are developing can be used to improve natural disaster early warning systems.

We think without borders

With our magazine, we give you an insight into the research and teaching being done at our University. We focus on our transdisciplinary research and the work that we are undertaking in our six Clusters of Excellence. By virtue of their reputation and sheer number, they are without parallel in the entire German university sector.

Find out more about us in the reports on the University, on our research and on some of our favorite places in Bonn—an extremely likeable city that is home to numerous international organizations.

Contact

Research and Innovation Services

+49 228 / 73-60915
GZDez7@verwaltung.uni-bonn.de

The research division manages the entire research process - from initial information on funding​, handling third-party funded projects and the exploitation of results.

Also see

Transdisciplinary Research Areas

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

Clusters of Excellence

The University of Bonn has six Clusters of Excellence, more than any other university in Germany.

NeurotechEU

NeurotechEU is an alliance that have set themself the mission of building an innovative, trans-European network of excellence for brain research and technologies. 

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