Bild: Adobe StockUniversities of the arts are the most international type of higher education institution in Germany. This is evident among both students and faculty. Women hold professorships here at a higher-than-average rate. The student-to-faculty ratio also differs significantly from that at other higher education institutions. This is shown by a new DatenCHECK report from the CHE Centre for Higher Education
High Percentage of international Students and Staff
Currently, approximately 38,000 students are enrolled at one of the 60 universities of the arts in Germany. The Federal Statistical Office counts only 52 independent universities of the arts. Further universities of arts are integrated into full universities.
In the 2025–26 academic year, 54 percent of first-year students at German universities of the arts were not German citizens. According to data from the Federal Statistical Office, this proportion was twice as high as the average for all German higher education institutions (27 percent).
Even when considering the total number of enrolled students, there is a significant difference between the various types of higher education institutions: Nationwide, 18 percent of students do not hold a German passport, while at universities of the arts, the figure is 34 percent. Among foreign students at universities of the arts, Chinese (17.7 percent) and South Korean (15.8 percent) nationals are particularly common.
This international character of German universities of the arts is also reflected in the workforce. About one-quarter (24.5 percent) of academic and artistic staff are not German citizens. The average for universities is 16 percent.
Above-average number of women
In addition, there are more female students than male students at universities of the arts in Germany. In the 2025–26 winter semester, they accounted for 59 percent of the student body. That is eight percentage points higher than the average for all German universities (51 percent).
Women are also represented at an above-average rate among faculty members. In 2024, they held 37.8 percent of professorial positions at universities of the arts. Across all types of higher education institutions, the proportion was 29.7 percent. Only colleges of education (‘Pädagogische Hochschulen’) achieved an even higher figure, at 48.1 percent.
Significantly fewer students per faculty member
Universities of the arts in Germany offer their students intensive individual guidance. On average, there are only 15.3 students per professor at these institutions. At universities, the figure is 62.2, and at universities of applied sciences, it is 50 students. Across all types of higher education institutions, the average is 55 students per professor.
The high student-to-faculty ratio is consistent with the unique educational profile of universities of the arts. This is because art programs often rely on one-on-one instruction and the individualized development of skills and talents.
A typical feature of universities of art, therefore, is their special admissions process for applicants, since artistic aptitude is what counts most at an universities of art. Applicants must demonstrate their skills, for example, through an audition or a portfolio.
About the DatenCHECK
The authors of the DatenCHECK report Kunsthochschulen in Deutschland: Ihre Besonderheiten auf einen Blick“ (‘Universities of the arts in Germany: Their Distinctive Features at a Glance’) are Cort-Denis Hachmeister and Luisa Weiser. The analysis examines student numbers, admissions procedures, staff structure, student-to-staff ratios and third-party funding at German universities of the arts. For the statistical comparisons, the CHE takes into account the 52 art colleges which the Federal Statistical Office classified as independent institutions within this higher education sector in the winter semester 2025/26.