The Mittweida University looks back on a history of over 150 years, which began with the founding of technical educational institutions in 1865. Its origins are closely linked to the pioneers Wilhelm Heinrich Uhland and Carl Georg Weitzel. While Uhland founded the first technical college in Mittweida in 1865, which later moved to Frankenberg, Weitzel continued the project in Mittweida and successfully established the "Technikum Mittweida" in 1867. Under his leadership, the private training facility for mechanical engineering quickly grew to become one of the leading technical educational institutions in Germany.

Weitzel early on recognized the importance of a practical engineering education and introduced innovative teaching methods as well as modern facilities such as laboratories and a department for electrical engineering. The increasing number of students and the international orientation made the technical college an important educational location, which already counted over 185 students from Europe, Asia, and overseas by the turn of the century.

After the reunification of Germany, the university was transformed into a university of applied sciences in 1992 and developed into a high-performing institution. Today, Mittweida University has around 6,000 students in five faculties and four research focuses. It offers a wide range of practice-oriented degree programs and is a significant player in the Saxon higher education landscape.