Following groundbreaking in 1965, the university officially opened to students during the 1967–1968 winter semester, initially housing faculties in Law and Business Sciences and Philosophy.

Its most famous academic, the previous Pope Benedict XVI, served as a professor there until 1977 and formally retained his chair in theology.

[3] Protestant intellectuals again tried to establish a university in 1633, though their attempts were blocked by the arrival of imperial troops from orders of Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand II.

[4] The university's most famous faculty member is Pope Benedict XVI, who taught from 1969 until he was appointed Cardinal and Archbishop of Munich in 1977.

Another famous former faculty member, Karl Stetter, worked as head of the Archaea Center and the Department of Microbiology between 1980 and 2002.

The university's reputation and attractiveness is enhanced by the 2,000-year-old town of Regensburg, its scenic countryside, the Donautal (Danube Valley), a high density of bars and the nearby heights of the Bavarian Forest.

Brisk cultural life both in the city and on campus provide great recreational opportunities, enhanced by a number of nearby lakes.

Key fields of activity include the Natural Sciences (Mathematics, Physics, Bio-Sciences, Chemistry and Pharmacy), the Humanities (History, Philologies) and Medicine.

In detail: according to a recent documentation of the DFG, the physics faculty of the university in 2009 held the first place in Bavaria, and the third one in Germany, concerning the financial support.

[7] Due to its geographical location near the former Iron Curtain border of the Czech Republic, the university considers itself a bridge.

Working with partners in Europaeum, the University of Regensburg has set up an interdisciplinary centre for research and teaching on all aspects pertaining to Central, Eastern and Southeastern European countries.

[11] On campus, students are provided with a large central cafeteria (Mensa) and several smaller ones, a pizzeria, a bank, a bookshop as well as various other shops.

The open-access University Library, with its modern online catalogue and loan system, holds over 3.15 million books and periodicals.

Various choirs, musical ensembles and art exhibitions (drawings, prints, sculpture and photography) testify to a dynamic cultural life on campus.