Frankfurt's alma mater, the Viadrina -
on the trail of Brandenburg's first state university

Along with Alt-Brandenburg, Neu-Brandenburg, Berlin and its sister town of Cölln, the city of Frankfurt (Oder) was one of the seven capitals of the Mark Brandenburg. In 1498 it was identified as the best location for a new university which opened its doors to students in 1506. Up to its closure in 1811, over 70,000 students had studied there. Many of them went into service in the Brandenburg-Prussian state. Traces of the old Viadrina can still be seen in the city. A new information system currently being installed is intended to help visitors to locate both its visible traces and those that vanished due to the destruction caused by the Second World War.

With the establishment in 1991 of the European University Viadrina Frankfurt (Oder), which has 5,200 students of 74 different nationalities, Frankfurt (Oder) finally became a Brandenburg university city again.