Darmstadt University of Applied Sciences – applied science in technology, society and the arts

Darmstadt University of Applied Sciences (h_da) is one of the largest universities of applied sciences (HAW) in Germany. Over 70 bachelor’s, diploma and master’s degree programmes, many of which allow students to choose their own specialisations, offer excellent career prospects for its approximately 13,500 students. They study in Engineering, natural sciences and mathematics, information science and computer science, economics and society, architecture, media and design.

As a university of applied sciences, h_da follows in the tradition of German universities of applied sciences: with its academic and practice-oriented courses, it is open to a wide range of educational backgrounds. It promotes academic success through smaller class sizes and a high staff-to-student ratio.

National Award – Education for Sustainable Development

The Federal Ministry of Education and Research and the German Commission for UNESCO recognised h_da as a model for sustainable development for the first time in 2014 and again in 2017, 2019, 2021 and 2024. By recognising it as an award-winning initiative within the UNESCO programme “Education for Sustainable Development: Realising the Global Sustainable Development Goals (ESD 2030)”, the independent jury thus acknowledged h_da’s consistent focus on sustainable development – not only in teaching and research, but also in the management of its buildings and in its networking with partners in the region. The ‘Sustainable Development Initiative’ (I:NE), the nucleus for numerous joint projects between h_da and partners in the region, played a key role in this award. As part of the federal-state funding project “Innovative University”, the university and its partners are implementing numerous sustainability projects. Through the “Excellence Initiative for Universities of Applied Sciences (formerly FHs)”, they are receiving around ten million euros.

In the fields of research, development and knowledge transfer, three key institutions focus exclusively on sustainable development: The Doctoral Centre for Sustainability Sciences offers a doctoral programme in sustainability sciences that is unique in Germany. At the Research Centre for Sustainable Processes and Procedures (fz npv), researchers from various disciplines work together; where third-party funded projects on :ne are carried out and which provides an infrastructure for ongoing exchange on methods and procedures in applied research. 

The Innovation and Transformation Platform for Sustainable Development (itp:ne) brings together stakeholders from academia, politics, business and civil society to establish processes for sustainable development. The itp:ne also supports researchers through exchange formats and capacity-building in inter- and transdisciplinary research. From 2018 to 2025, the affiliated Citizens’ Panel systematically incorporated citizens’ perspectives into the transfer and design of change processes in the region.