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Aalen University of Applied Sciences is a leader in promoting start-ups. Photo: © Aalen University | Thomas Klink

Aalen University of Applied Sciences is one of the best universities in Germany for promoting start-ups. In the new ranking of the "Start-up Radar" - a highly regarded comparative study - Aalen University of Applied Sciences achieved third place among the 76 medium-sized universities and technical schools evaluated. This means that Aalen University of Applied Sciences is among the top 3 start-up universities in Germany for the second time in a row. "I am delighted with this top ranking," says Rector Prof. Dr. Harald Riegel and emphasizes: "Our good performance proves once again how much our commitment to start-ups pays off and encourages us to continue to intensively promote start-ups at all levels - from first-semester students to the professoriate."

Every two years, the "Star-up Radar" study is published by the Donor's Association in cooperation with the Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology. The study examines and evaluates the performance of German universities in the field of start-up support. In the current ranking, Aalen University of Applied Sciences achieved third place in the category of medium-sized Technical Schools and Universities with 5,000-15,000 students. This proves for the second time in a row that it is one of the top universities for start-up support. "My thanks for this huge success go to everyone involved, especially the team led by Prof. Dr. René Niethammer and Christian Kling," explains Prof. Dr. Andreas Ladurner, the university's vice rector responsible for start-ups. "Entrepreneurship is part of our university DNA and integrated across disciplines through special lectures, a university chair specifically for start-ups and initiatives such as the student consultancy 'InnoConsult'," says Ladurner. "In addition, we operate in a strong 'ecosystem' in Aalen. We benefit from the close cooperation with the Innovation Center at Aalen University, headed by Dr. Andreas Ehrhardt, and the economic development agencies in the city and district," adds the vice rector.

Further Promotion of Start-ups

However, Aalen University of Applied Sciences does not want to stop there and rest on its laurels. Successful offerings such as the "Business Development" master's degree are to be strengthened and start-up support is to take on an even more significant role. "We are currently establishing a center for start-ups at the university in order to bundle start-up culture and entrepreneurship in one place and in one ecosystem and to anchor it more firmly in teaching and research," explains Prof. Dr. Volker Grienitz, who has held the professorship for start-up management since February of this year. The research strength of Aalen University of Applied Sciences should pay off even more in new business models in the future. "The goal is to link the potential that arises from the university's cutting-edge research with startup support. In this way, we will further advance the university and ultimately the entire region," says Rector Prof. Dr. Harald Riegel, explaining the university's strategy for the coming years.