Osnabrück University was founded in 1973 as part of the wave of new German universities established in the postwar decades to expand access to higher education. It is spread between two historic buildings in the city centre: the Baroque Schloss — the former residence of the Prince-Bishops — and the former arsenal, a substantial eighteenth-century building a few streets away. The Schloss in particular gives the university an unusually handsome physical setting for an institution that barely predates punk.
The Schlossgarten, the formal garden laid out behind the palace, is the best reason for a non-student to visit the campus area. It is a pleasant green space in the centre of the city, free to enter and relatively untroubled by crowds. The university's presence gives the surrounding streets a lively café and bar scene that is concentrated enough to be worth finding. Osnabrück is a noticeably younger city than its Westphalian neighbours, and the university is a significant part of why.