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Study in Hannover, international student city guide

Hannover, sometimes also spelled as Hanover, is the fourth largest city in Northern Germany, and is the capital of the Lower Saxony state. It is located South of Hamburg, and West of Berlin, and is home to more than 500,000 people.

Hannover is well known for hosting multiple fairs and events each year at its world famous fairground, which is the largest in the world. Many fairs held here are internationally renowned and bring in a big influx of tourists.

The city dates back to the mediaeval times, and has long been a natural and important crossroads within Germany. During World War II, the city was a target for bombing, and more than 90% of the city’s infrastructure and buildings was destroyed. Whilst some of the mediaeval architecture survived, a lot of modern day Hannover has been developed since the end of the war.

All universities in Hannover

  • Hannover Medical School
  • Hochschule Hannover
  • Hochschule für Musik, Theater und Medien Hannover
  • GISMA Business School
  • Leibniz University Hannover
  • School of Veterinary Medicine Hanover

Top universities in Hannover

Leibniz University Hannover

Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz University Hannover, known more commonly as just Leibniz University Hannover, is a public research university. It was founded in 1831, and has been renamed 6 times since its inception.

The university is a member of the TU9, which is a group of 9 Institutes of Technology in Germany. It also sponsors the German National Library of Science and Technology, which is the largest library of its kind in the world.

Leibniz University Hannover is the host university of the Max Planck Institute of Gravitational Physics, and boasts several winners of Nobel Prizes as previous members of its teaching staff and faculty, showing its connection and passion for research excellence.

GISMA Business School

GISMA Business School is a private business school that has its main campus in Hannover, and a satellite campus in Berlin. It was founded in 1999, and has been owned by Global University Systems (GUS) since 2013.

GISMA offers a variety of undergraduate and postgraduate degrees, including MBAs, as well as short courses and executive education programmes. All of the courses offered by GISMA are delivered and awarded by external universities. GISMA as a university is accredited by the AMBA (Association of MBAs), and several of its individual programmes are accredited by the FIBAA (Foundation for International Business Administration Accreditation)

Hannover universities world ranking 2025

Below are the top-ranked Hannover universities for international students, with their ranks in two of the world’s most well-respected international university rankings, the QS 2026 University World rankings and the Times Higher Education 2025 Rankings.

For more information about rankings systems and methodologies see our University rankings explained guide.

UniversityQS World University Ranking 2026THE World University Ranking 2025
Leibniz University Hannover=433351-400

Tuition and living costs in Hannover

Public universities in Germany do not charge tuition fees for students, both domestic and international. You will be required to pay a small fee of around 300-500 EUR each semester, as well as your living expenses. Private universities are able to set their own tuition fees, so these could be much higher. For more detailed information about how much a degree at a private university in Germany would cost, we recommend that you contact the university you are interested in studying at.

In terms of living expenses, Leibniz University Hannover suggests that a student will require around 870 EUR per month to live in Hannover. This includes your rent, groceries, broadband, study materials, and entertainment costs.

There are various scholarships and grants available to international students who are interested in studying in Hannover. For more information about these, contact the international office at the universities you are interested in.

Life in Hannover for international students

There are many interesting attractions located in the city of Hannover. You will find the Royal Gardens of Herrenhausen, which houses an important Baroque garden. The gardens were largely destroyed by Allied bombing in WWII, but have been reconstructed over the years. Another big landmark in the city is the Town Hall (Neues Rathaus), which has been standing since 1913, and boasts incredibly intricate architecture. Throughout the city you will find the Red Thread, which is a 4.2 kilometre long red line that marks out a walk that starts out at the Tourist Information office and ends on the Ernst-August Square in front of the central station. Along this line are the 36 most important sights of the city.

As well as these attractions, Hannover also has many green and outdoor spaces for you to enjoy and connect to nature. In the spring and summer, you can make the most of the warm weather, and in the autumn and winter, you can marvel at the leaves turning and potentially enjoy some snowfall.

The efficient public transportation system that spreads all across Germany means that you can easily travel throughout the country, and explore other regions and cities. You can also take the opportunity to travel to other mainland European countries, such as the Netherlands or Belgium.