On June 10, 2025, the University of Mannheim will have a special event: the Uni-Fest, which replaces the traditional castle festival this year. The reason for this is financial considerations, which made a fundamental realignment of the events necessary. The aim of the university festival is to promote exchange between the university and urban society and to make current research results tangible to a broad audience. Citizens of Mannheim as well as students, employees and partners of the university are cordially invited to take part in this special day. Entry opens at 4 p.m., while the program begins at 4:30 p.m. Admission to the festival is free, but access to the Schneckenhof party that follows costs 8 euros. Further information and ticket bookings are available on the university website: www.uni-mannheim.de/uni-fest.

The preliminary program of the university festival promises a wide range of experiences. At 4:30 p.m., the children's university will be opened by Annika Frank, head of the Department of German Philology, with an exciting lecture on comics. In addition, various interactive offers from different chairs will be presented, including the use of chatbots for psychological conversations. The ExpressWISSEN exchange format follows at 5:00 p.m., in which experts discuss important topics such as party competition and deepfake. The Science Marathon will take place at 5:30 p.m., with keynote speeches from renowned Mannheim professors such as Prof. Dr. Stefanie Schäfer and Prof. Dr. Christoph Rothe. The conclusion is the format for KNOWLEDGE, where Prof. Dr. Heiko Paulheim talks about the risks and side effects of artificial intelligence.

Welcoming the freshmen

Another highlight of the day will be welcoming the new students. At 8:30 p.m., Rector Prof. Dr. Thomas Fetzer, Mayor Christian Specht and the AStA chairmen will give a speech on the stage in the Schneckenhof to welcome the new members of the university. This event is expected to be a pivotal moment of cultural exchange.

The musical supporting program is complemented by young pop and rock bands who provide entertainment. Exhibitions in the east wing of the castle by artist Ariane Hagl as well as the ABSOLVENTUM photo contest offer cultural enrichment. Historical photo and video documents are presented with listening stations in the university archive. Sports enthusiasts can try out various sports offered by scholarship holders of the Rhine-Neckar Metropolitan Region Top Sports Scholarship. A winery village in the style of a farm will ensure your physical well-being.

The snail farm party

The evening will culminate with the Schneckenhof party, which starts at 9 p.m. and lasts until 3 a.m. On this festive occasion, guests can enjoy the festival to the fullest and end the day in good company.

In summary, the University Festival of the University of Mannheim on June 10, 2025 will be an eventful day full of exchange, science and culture. For further information, Patrick Weisenburger from event management and Luisa Gebhardt from the university's editorial team are available not only by telephone but also by email: Patrick Weisenburger, Tel.: +49 621 181-1122, Email: Weisenburgermail-service.uni-mannheim.de; Luisa Gebhardt, Tel.: +49 621 181-3266, Email: luisa.gebhardtmail-uni-mannheim.de.