Leuphana University of Lüneburg


Leuphana University Lüneburg is a public university in Lüneburg, Lower Saxony, Germany. Leuphana was founded in 1946 as a college of education, later expanding to become a university designated as a "foundation under public law." The name Leuphana is derived from an ancient settlement on the Elbe that was mentioned in a 2nd-century geographical world atlas by Ptolemy.
Leuphana has five schools of research, which focus on the fields of education, culture and society, management and technology, sustainability, and public affairs. With nearly 10,000 students, approximately 12% of which are international students.

History

Leuphana was founded in May 1946 as one of eight colleges of education.
In 2008, a graduate college was opened that integrates master's degree and doctorate programmes. In addition are a pan-departmental research centre and a professional school for advanced study courses, like business co-operation.
The university opened its Central Building on March 11, 2017. The building was designed by Daniel Libeskind and cost nearly €100 million to build.

Institutions

Leuphana has five research schools, each of which are made up of several institutes and professorships.

School of Education

Source:

School of Culture and Society

School of Management and Technology

  • Institute for Auditing and Tax
  • Institute for New Venture Management
  • Institute of Experimental Industrial Psychology
  • Institute of Information Systems
  • Institute of Knowledge and Information Management
  • Institute of Management, Accounting & Finance
  • Institute of Marketing
  • Institute of Management and Organization
  • Institute of Performance Management
  • Institute for Production Technology and Systems

School of Sustainability

  • Centre for Sustainability Management
  • Institute of Sustainable Chemistry
  • Institute of Ecology
  • Social-Ecological Systems Institute
  • Institute for Ethics and Transdisciplinary Sustainability Research
  • Institute of Sustainability Material Flows and Circularity
  • Institute of Sustainability Governance
  • Institute of Sustainable Psychology
  • Sustainability Education and Transdisciplinary Research Institute

School of Public Affairs

Notable staff and alumni

Rankings

In the Times Higher Education World University Rankings of 2025, the university is placed at 401-500th globally and 38th within the country.
Leuphana ranks 7th among the most successful, mid-sized universities for start-ups, according to the Gründungsradar 2025 of the Stifterverband für die Deutsche Wissenschaft.