Köthen

Bach, homeopathy, and language

The district town of Köthen (Anhalt) with its tower-studded silhouette enchants more than just tourists. It has always been a place for people who have aimed high. Music, medicine, and education have long-standing traditions here. The campus in Köthen has an international flair.

In three departments  Computer Science and Languages (Dept. 5); Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering and Engineering Management (Dept. 6); and Applied Biosciences and Process Engineering (Dept. 7)  some 3,500 students study, supervised by 55 professors, study and pursue research. The international atmosphere is ensured by the approximately 430 international students preparing for a success university degree in Germany at the state’s Preparatory School (Landesstudienkolleg). On campus, there are large sports facilities and an active student club. In addition, Anhalt University’s administration can be found here.

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© Hochschule Anhalt

Köthen’s graceful historical city center invites visitors to take a stroll. Traces of the city's more than 900-year history can be found everywhere  not only in its impressive towers, churches and the castle. Indeed, it is the people who have made Köthen internationally famous. Especially Johann Sebastian Bach, to whom Köthen owes the title, “City of Bach”. The composer worked as the conductor for Prince Leopold von Anhalt-Köthen. And a second name is also known around the world and associated with Köthen: Dr. Samuel Hahnemann, the founder of homeopathy,also worked and conducted research in Köthen. In fact, since the global association of homeopathic doctors, the “Liga Medicorum Homoeopathica Internationalis”, moved its headquarters from Geneva to Köthen, the city is now considered to be the “world’s capital of homeopathy.”

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© Bach

Besides music and medicine, the German language plays an important role. In Köthen, the first publisher of German school textbooks was founded. In the 17th century the first association dedicated to preserving the German language, “Fruchtbringende Gesellschaft” (The Fruitbearing Society) was created - a German academy with many linguistic, literary, and (educational) political ambitions. Since 2007, the “Neue Fruchtbringende Gesellschaft zu Köthen” (New Fruitbearing Society in Köthen) has carried on with this long tradition and presents, among other things, the interesting “Erlebniswelt Sprache” program at the prince’s castle. And there is yet another tradition: As early as 1891, Köthen was home to the engineering and STEM degree programs of Anhalt University. Ever since this time, the most pressing technical and technological questions have been investigated here.

© Köthen

Time-honored traditions are also a characteristic of Köthen’s leisure time activities and customs  e.g., everyone particularly enjoys celebrating here, the “fifth season” of Carnival. International students are often amazed at the invasion of revelers. During the Carnival parade on Carnival Monday, guests from all over Saxony-Anhalt come to have fun. The rest of the year is also quite enjoyable, as the city has a much lower rate of precipitation than the rest of Germany thanks to its location in the rain shadow of the Harz mountains. There is even a swimming lake close by on offer: A natural beach and top water quality attract visitors to the Edderitz beach area, a re-cultivated lake in a former lignite mining area. This modern development also fits well with the traditions of Anhalt University  all of society should benefit from a solution-oriented approach.

© copyright Andreas Bartsch 2012

26,519
inhabitants

78
area in km²

10
towns

2
city partnerships

Life in Köthen (Anhalt)

© Hochschule Anhalt

Housing

Affordable housing in student residence halls and city apartments, a rich cultural life, and a beautiful city center are reasons to study in Köthen (Anhalt).

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© Fotolia

Visa

If you have already received a visa for Germany in your home country, you are permitted to stay in Germany for 90 days (3 months)...

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© Hochschule Anhalt

Financing

Tuition fees, housing, eating and drinking, occasionally some new clothes, and money for the next party. If you want to study successfully and don’t want to live like a caveperson, you will need to find a way to pay for everything.

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© Lisa Raudnitschka

Leisure time

Young students enjoy finding ways to spend their free time. Here you can find a good overview of what Köthen has to offer.

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© copyright Andreas Bartsch 2012

Campus

What can I find where? – Tips for finding your way around Köthen campus.

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© Kindertagesstätte Angelika Hartmann

Family

The Anhalt University offers individual and trustworthy childcare services to help students balance family and studies.

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I have had to be diligent; those who are just as diligent will be able to be just as successful.

Johann Sebastian Bach

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Getting to Köthen