Academic Index Last updated: June 22, 2026

29 Best Universities in North Rhine-Westphalia for Philosophy

If you are looking to study Philosophy in North Rhine-Westphalia, our index highlights the top 29 domain-leading institutions. Our methodology evaluated 1.07M subject-specific papers and 28.53M citations to find the strongest faculties. This targeted approach bypasses general university reputation, directly revealing the strongest programs.

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1

Munster

University of Munster

For Philosophy

#9 in Germany #55 in Europe

14% Acceptance

43,728 Enrollment

1780 Founded

2

Aachen

RWTH Aachen University

For Philosophy

#10 in Germany #58 in Europe

35% Acceptance

47,521 Enrollment

1870 Founded

3

Bonn

University of Bonn

For Philosophy

#11 in Germany #65 in Europe

36% Acceptance

38,043 Enrollment

1818 Founded

4

Cologne

University of Cologne

For Philosophy

#13 in Germany #69 in Europe

33% Acceptance

52,204 Enrollment

1388 Founded

5

Bochum

Ruhr University Bochum

For Philosophy

#16 in Germany #86 in Europe

28% Acceptance

42,954 Enrollment

1962 Founded

6

Dortmund

TU Dortmund University

For Philosophy

#25 in Germany #120 in Europe

59% Acceptance

34,616 Enrollment

1968 Founded

7

Witten

Witten/Herdecke University

For Philosophy

#76 in Germany #451 in Europe

50% Acceptance

2,894 Enrollment

1982 Founded

8

Lemgo

Ostwestfalen-Lippe University of Applied Sciences

For Philosophy

#149 in Germany #1019 in Europe

40% Acceptance

5,938 Enrollment

1971 Founded

9

Hagen

University of Hagen

For Philosophy

#56 in Germany #302 in Europe

43% Acceptance

71,351 Enrollment

1974 Founded

10

Bielefeld

Bielefeld University of Applied Sciences

For Philosophy

#108 in Germany #755 in Europe

60% Acceptance

8,633 Enrollment

1971 Founded

11

Siegen

University of Siegen

For Philosophy

#54 in Germany #295 in Europe

54% Acceptance

17,805 Enrollment

1972 Founded

12

Dortmund

University of Applied Sciences and Arts

For Philosophy

#130 in Germany #883 in Europe

68% Acceptance

14,373 Enrollment

1971 Founded

13

Paderborn

University of Paderborn

For Philosophy

#49 in Germany #253 in Europe

60% Acceptance

19,110 Enrollment

1972 Founded

14

Sankt Augustin

Bonn-Rhein-Sieg University of Applied Sciences

For Philosophy

#120 in Germany #826 in Europe

51% Acceptance

8,000 Enrollment

1995 Founded

15

Wuppertal

University of Wuppertal

For Philosophy

#47 in Germany #244 in Europe

40% Acceptance

22,601 Enrollment

1972 Founded

16

Dusseldorf

University of Applied Sciences Dusseldorf

For Philosophy

#83 in Germany #527 in Europe

32% Acceptance

11,170 Enrollment

1971 Founded

17

Bielefeld

University of Bielefeld

For Philosophy

#21 in Germany #94 in Europe

50% Acceptance

23,342 Enrollment

1969 Founded

18

Munster

Munster University of Applied Sciences

For Philosophy

#99 in Germany #681 in Europe

40% Acceptance

15,000 Enrollment

1971 Founded

19

Dusseldorf

Heinrich Heine University of Dusseldorf

For Philosophy

#28 in Germany #132 in Europe

51% Acceptance

37,473 Enrollment

1965 Founded

20

Iserlohn

University of Applied Sciences Europe

For Philosophy

#170 in Germany #1266 in Europe

56% Acceptance

2,906 Enrollment

2000 Founded

21

Cologne

Cologne University of Applied Sciences

For Philosophy

#86 in Germany #556 in Europe

51% Acceptance

27,000 Enrollment

1971 Founded

22

Essen

University of Duisburg – Essen

For Philosophy

#27 in Germany #128 in Europe

51% Acceptance

43,281 Enrollment

2003 Founded

23

Kleve

Rhine-Waal University of Applied Sciences

For Philosophy

#162 in Germany #1129 in Europe

68% Acceptance

6,723 Enrollment

2009 Founded

24

Essen

Folkwang University of the Arts

For Philosophy

#64 in Germany #357 in Europe

46% Acceptance

1,506 Enrollment

1927 Founded

25

Cologne

Academy of Media Arts Cologne

For Philosophy

#171 in Germany #1290 in Europe

16% Acceptance

398 Enrollment

1990 Founded

26

Cologne

German Sport University Cologne

For Philosophy

#88 in Germany #586 in Europe

30% Acceptance

6,000 Enrollment

1947 Founded

27

Cologne

Cologne Business School

For Philosophy

#159 in Germany #1100 in Europe

33% Acceptance

1,123 Enrollment

1993 Founded

28

Aachen

Aachen University of Applied Sciences

For Philosophy

#65 in Germany #367 in Europe

51% Acceptance

13,671 Enrollment

1971 Founded

29

Essen

University of Applied Sciences for Economics and Management

For Philosophy

#100 in Germany #699 in Europe

43% Acceptance

47,098 Enrollment

1993 Founded