Hanover: Big business, bigger beauty

On the surface, Hanover is all about business, but look deeper and you'll find an attractive city: students are lured by several high-profile universities and fall in love with the city's café culture, sports teams and shopping district…

Hanover at a glance

Hanover City Hall, Photo: Frank Rex, HTs/VV

Hanover, nestled in the southeast of Lower-Saxony, halfway between Berlin and the Netherlands, is known worldwide for hosting the world's largest conventions, including CeBIT and EXPO. Tucked behind its business façade are both unheralded attractions and a bustling university life. With a world-famous opera house, a vibrant shopping district, renowned botanical gardens, professional sports teams and a unique café culture, Hanover has something for everyone.
Hanover is also a hub for big business: The northern city serves as the home base for major insurers and financial services providers including Talanx Group (Germany's third-largest insurer) and AWD (Allgemeiner Wirtschaftsdienst). Also located here are travel and tourism company TUI and tire manufacturer Continental.
Hanover also hosts some of the largest trade fairs in the world, including CeBIT, the world's biggest computer and IT trade fair, where some 6,000 companies from 77 countries showcase their latest innovations and products each spring.
Many of Hanover's students start their careers in the city after they graduate, hardly surprising given the universities' strong ties with the industry. Hanover has 500,000 residents, and fully 36,000 of them are students. The main university, Leibniz University of Hannover, sits along the Leine River, just five minutes from the city center. The top floor of the main building - one of the tallest in Hanover - boasts an amazing panoramic view of the city. The neighboring district of Linden, home to many students, is also the heart of the city's university culture. Dotted with cafes, music venues, bars, art exhibits and the beautiful gardens that surround the university, Linden is one of the liveliest districts in the city.

Universitiles - Overview

Leibniz Universität Hannover

Hanover University, Photo: Hannover Tourismus Service

The university of Hanover was recently renamed after the great academic Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, who made great contributions to the fields of scientific and philosophical inquiry. In his spirit, the university forges ahead into the future, offering cutting-edge programs that are in-step with rapidly changing scientific fields.
Leibniz University was founded in 1831 with a first intake of just 65 pupils. Today it has over 23,000 students who can choose from over 60 interdisciplinary and practice-oriented courses of study.

University of Applied Sciences and Art Hannover
With more than 7,000 students, the University of Applied Science and Arts is the second-largest in Hanover. Its graduates are prized by industry for their programs' heavy emphasis on on-the-job training.

Hanover University of Music, Drama and Media
Adding to Hanover's cultural clout is the School of Music and Theater, which enrolls 1,200 students from 55 different countries. Since its founding in 1978, this institution has brought students from all over the world to study in a city that has an unqualified appreciation for music.

Stiftung Tierärztliche Hochschule Hannover
Established in 1778 by King George III as the Royal School of Equine Medicine, the University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover (TiHo) is one of the oldest establishments of veterinary education in Europe and the oldest continuously operating independent one in Germany. TiHo consists of six clinics, 20 institutes, five interdisciplinary centers and two affiliated independent organizations, making it one of the most important scientific institutions in Hanover.

Gisma Business School
A fairly new addition to Hanover's educational offerings, Gisma is affiliated with the prestigious Purdue University in the US. Its goal is to prepare aspiring young business talent for work in an increasingly globalized economy.

Recreation in Hanover

Ballhof Square, Photo: Arnulf Piontek, Hannover Tourismus Service

Hanover has cultural offerings to suit any taste. With over 40 theaters, a world famous opera house and several museums like the Niedersächsisches Landesmuseum or the Sprengel Museum, you are sure to find something that will tickle your fancy.
Hanover is a city that loves music, so it's no surprise that there's hardly a shortage of concert events. One of the city's most popular music festivals are the Niedersächsische Musiktage presenting lots of different bands and concerts. For those who enjoy nature, the city has a world-class zoo, and the Georgen Gardens offer a retreat from the urban rat race. If shopping is your thing, you will find that Hanover has one of Germany's largest shopping districts in the center of town.
Hanover also offers something for sports lovers: Hannover 96 plays in Germany's top soccer division, the Bundesliga, and the Hannover Scorpions have established themselves in the DEL, the top ice hockey league.

Interview with Rieke from Germany

Rieke Liebrecht is a German student at Leibniz University and also works in child development on which she is writing her thesis.

Rieke, Photo: private

What's next for you?
After my studies, I am hoping to move to the Netherlands to teach children with learning disabilities. Hanover is not only a great place to be a student: Its international network also opens a wide range of opportunities.

What are your favorite places?
I like to spend most of my time in the Linden area, which is the most 'studenty' district. In general, Hanover has a lot to offer its students. When the weather is nice, I love the Georgen Gardens, where I enjoy sitting along the Leine River reading a book or simply watching people.
When the sun is shining, the park is full of smiling people, people playing football, barbecuing and having a good time. It is a great departure from the busy city life. When the sun goes down, one of my favorite places to hang out is the 'Faust', a cultural mix of bars, clubs and eateries.