44,382 students at RWTH Aachen: What the new figures mean for finding accommodation

What 44,382 students mean for a city like Aachen

Aachen has around 260,000 inhabitants. 44,382 students at RWTH alone represent almost a sixth of the city's population. If you add students from FH Aachen, the total number of students in Aachen is around 60,000. This is an exceptionally high student density for a city of this size and has direct consequences for the housing market.

The housing market in Aachen is responding to this demand just like any market with limited supply and high demand: with scarcity and rising prices in the most sought-after locations. Residential areas close to the campus, i.e. the area around RWTH Campus West, the Pontviertel and the surrounding streets, are constantly under pressure. Good rooms in shared apartments in these locations are rare, and anyone who doesn't search in time will only find what others did not want in October or April, the two months of the semester start.

This is not an abstract market problem, but a lived reality for thousands of students every semester. who Looking for accommodation in Aachen Has already experienced in the last few weeks before the start of the semester, knows what they're talking about.

The record for international students and its impact on the housing market

36 percent of international students are not just an impressive number for a university that is continuing to expand its international reputation. It is also a figure that weighs on the housing market in a specific way that is different from the situation of domestic students.

International students face hurdles that simply do not exist for someone from Germany. The lack of Schufa information is a knockout criterion for many private landlords, regardless of whether the financial resources are actually available. Knowledge of German is often a prerequisite on the traditional rental market because advertisements, communication and rental contracts are written in German. And personal visits are simply not logistically possible for someone who is still in India, China or Turkey and wants to move in six weeks.

These structural hurdles mean that a significant proportion of the 15,881 international RWTH students are not even able to enter the free rental market as a realistic option, and that in a market where there is too little supply anyway. What remains are student dormitories with long waiting lists, expensive transitional accommodation or fully furnished apartments that avoid these hurdles in a targeted manner.

As an international student, anyone who asks themselves Which living options in Aachen are really realistic, should know this structural context before investing time in open market applications.

The largest faculty and what it means for the residential area

The figures from RWTH also provide information on the distribution of students among faculties, which is directly relevant for deciding where to live. With around 10,771 students, including 2,133 in their first semester, the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering is by far the largest at RWTH. The Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Information Technology follows in second place with 5,296 students, and in third place is the Faculty of Mathematics, Computer Science and Natural Sciences with 5,253 students.

For the winter semester 2025/26, the independent Faculty of Computer Science, which was founded on October 1, 2025 and already has 4425 students, has been added. These figures are not only academically interesting. They show that the majority of RWTH students belong to engineering and natural science subjects, whose institutes and teaching buildings are mostly located on Campus West. Anyone studying in one of these subjects is structurally better positioned with a residential address close to campus than with an address at the other end of town.

More about the best residential areas for students in Aachen and why the location right on Campus West is so crucial for everyday student life.

What 64 percent of first-year students in Aachen reveal about the housing market

One figure from the RWTH press release, which is rarely commented on, is particularly informative: 64 percent of first-year students stated that they live in the Aachen metropolitan area when enrolling. That sounds reassuring at first. However, it also means that 36 percent of the almost 9,420 first-year students did not yet have a fixed address in Aachen for enrollment or are enrolling from outside the city.

These people are either commuters who initially travel to university from another city, or they have provided temporary accommodation, or they have simply not yet found a permanent solution. In a city with Aachen's housing market pressure, the last variant is more likely than you think. This corresponds with reports from other semester start seasons, in which thousands of students still without rooms at the start of the semester stood there.

What these figures mean for the decision between a shared flat and a furnished apartment

Anyone who is familiar with this market situation sees the decision between a shared room and a furnished apartment in a different light. The question is not just what is cheaper or what offers more convenience. The question is also which option is realistically accessible under these market conditions.

A room in a shared apartment near the campus in Aachen requires: sufficient lead time for the search, German language skills for communication and application, Schufa information, the willingness and opportunity to visit in person, and a dose of luck in a market with many competitors per offer. For international students from China, India or Turkey, who belong to the largest groups at RWTH, several of these requirements simply cannot be met.

A fully furnished apartment such as The Good Shepherd's on Campus West requires a clear idea of the desired period and an Internet connection for the request. No Schufa, no knowledge of German required, no personal visit necessary. That the Request directly via the apartment page Delivering availability feedback within seconds is not a luxury in a tight market, but a real advantage.

If you want to know whether a furnished apartment is really more expensive than a shared room on the bottom line, you should honest cost comparison read before he makes a decision.

What the record for international students means for Aachen as a city

Beyond the housing market, the number of 36 percent international students says something more fundamental about Aachen. RWTH is a university with a genuine international profile, and this is reflected in the cityscape, in the gastronomy, in the languages on campus and in the cultural diversity of student life.

Anyone new to Aachen comes across a city where it is normal for people to speak English on campus, that conversations take place in five different languages at the same time in the canteen, and that the neighbor in the dormitory comes from another continent. This is a quality that is not found at every German university location, and one that Student life in Aachen decisively shapes.

conclusion

44,382 students, 36 percent of foreign nationals, 141 countries of origin: The current enrollment figures at RWTH Aachen show a top-level international university and a housing market that is structurally not keeping pace with this demand. For international students, this means that the free rental market with its Schufa and language hurdles is not a realistic option for many and that fully furnished apartments near the campus are not only more convenient, but often the only truly accessible solution.

If you are now looking for an apartment for the summer semester 2026, you shouldn't wait: https://guterhirte-wohnen.com/apartment

Or get in touch directly: https://guterhirte-wohnen.com/kontakt

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