Biotechnology research in Berlin

Facts and figures

More than 20 university and non-university research institutes perform research in the field of life sciences and provide training and education programs, among them:
- 4 universities with 14 specialized departments and 34 institutes
- 7 universities of applied sciences (“Fachhochschule”)
- 7 institutes mandated with research tasks by the government
One of Europe’s largest university hospitals – the Charité – with 6 primary areas of research and some 100 clinics and institutes clustered in 17 Charité Centers;
More than 10,000 employees and over 350 working groups at scientific institutions;
The excellent and closely knit network between research-intensive hospitals and CROs as well as the highly diverse range of test groups has made the city a center for clinical studies.

Major research focuses

Genome and proteome research
Biosensors, bioanalytics, molecular biology
Regenerative medicine
Molecular medicine

These core fields of biotechnology are complemented by the expertise available in the city in major enabling technologies, such as microsystems technology and nanotechnology, optical technologies, information technology, mathematics, chemistry and physics.

Research institutes in the capital region

Professionals

Each year, the region’s universities produce 3,000 graduates in life sciences-related disciplines, including 750 graduates in biotechnology fields. At the Charité University Hospital alone trains more than 8,000 students, around 1,700 of them from abroad, at the medical faculties of the Free University Berlin (FU) and Humboldt University Berlin (HU).

The region’s ongoing efforts to maintain and promote top-of-the-line training opportunities in industry-related fields are reflected, for example, in the institution of the degree courses MBA BioMedtech and MBA Clinical Trial Management as well as by the graduate schools established by research institutes.

The Max Delbrück Center has recently founded the “Helmholtz International Research School in Translational Cardiovascular and Metabolic Medicine – TransCard.”