Philipps-Universität Marburg Speciality : Development Studies
programme: Innovation and Business Development

I finished my Master’s Degree at Marburg University, because of 3 reasons: 1. its location near to Europe’s financial capital and one of Europe’s richest and most industrialised regions as well as Europe’s second largest International Airport, 2. its excellent links, geographical closeness and an excellent reputation to large companies in the Frankfurt area and in Germany in general, and 3. for its long history: it is the oldest protestant university in the world which generated 11 Nobel Prices and 11 Leibniz Prices, giving this University a spot in the Top 70 best universities in the World in terms of Nobel Prizes. Another big name is the French inventor of the steam engine: Denis Papin or one of the major philosophers of the XXth century.
What I liked: the excellent Business and Administration classes as well as highly qualitative courses in Economics, but also the praxis-oriented and high-level / well-documented Innovation Management classes, the old campus with its stately medieval buildings in which I studied or received my diploma, the well-organized and distinctive graduation ceremony, the sumptuous castle, the picturesque Christmas markets, the canals on which you can do some rowing (just like at Cambridge University), the well-furnished University shop. I went back there in 2018 and noticed that some halls have been renovated with modern architecture and are now all equipped with WIFI.
What I will not miss: the IT classes in Business & Administration which were too theoretical, some students halls (equipped with dormitories) were too far away from the campus with bad bus connections during snowy winters (and some of them without any internet connection, although they are now all equipped with it). After the induction month, the students’ life was somewhat anemic/disorganized and failed to nurture a sense of belonging. The city of Marburg is quaint and beautiful as well as close to Frankfurt, but you still need 1,5 hours up to 2 hours by train to reach Frankfurt (quite a distance!), in other words, you better like studying in a small students village. Students in Economics / Business & Administration are not pushed much towards a PhD or counselled about it, even when they show motivation for it. The lack of studying space (apart from the libraries) and the old library buildings built during the seventies, located on the other side of the riverbank which is in desperate need of demolition or renovation.