In 1961 a state-managed school of engineering was founded in Gelsenkirchen-Buer.

Lectures in mechanical engineering started in autumn 1962 followed by lectures in electro-technology.

In 1971 the school moved to its current premises in Neidenburger Strasse where it was incorporated as a department of Bochum University of Applied Sciences.

Westphalian University of Applied Sciences Gelsenkirchen Bocholt Recklinghausen was founded on the 1st of August in 1992. Head office was in Gelsenkirchen with an additional department in Bocholt. Inauguration brought with it a greatly enhanced range of courses including those in the fields of business studies and  supply technologies as well as environmental engineering followed by informatics and micro-, information- and communications technologies.

Politically, the University’'s mission was to undertake appropriate research which would support changes taking place in the Ruhr Area such as the shift from coal and steel industries to sustainable industries.

The first international contacts came during the university years 1993 / 94 and 1994 / 95.

The Recklinghausen site was incorporated on the 1st of August in 1995. Here, the faculties of Basiness Law, Businessl Engineering and Applied Sciences were well established.

Gelsenkirchen and Bocholt also continued expanding their range of courses on offer: in Gelsenkirchen, Technical Documentation which had been integrated into the Mechanical Engineering course, later gave rise to a free-standing course in Journalism and Public Relations.

International orientation is under constant development.

The expansion in branches of study together with an increase in personnel led to a demand for more space. In 1997 the library, the administration department and the refectory moved into new premises on the Gelsenkirchen-Buer site.
A year later a new building was made available in Bocholt and then in 2000, another new building was made available in Recklinghausen.

The University'’s desire for international cooperation came into fruition when the Languages Centre was established in new buildings in Recklinghausen.
The Centre’s' remit was to integrate a technically-oriented foreign language into all courses offered. The languages, predominantly English, French and Spanish, led to the forming of many international partnerships.

Meanwhile the establishing of contacts and forming of bonds with business and company proprietors in the region was ongoing and during this time, companies provided financial support to the University for its projects. In response, the University has made special efforts to promote the setting up of new companies leading to The Institute of Entrepreneurship being established as a central component of the University. The aim of the Institute is to help students start up their own companies at a future date. The Institute also provides new-concept competitions and project seminars aimed at generating new set-up ideas and constructing business plans.

The Bologna-Reform which was put into place to standardize the European university system, concluded in 1999.

Its effect on Gelsenkirchen University of Applied Sciences was that since the 2007 / 2008 winter semester, the University was able to offer a total of more than 25 Bachelor of Science courses (B. Sc.) and more than 11 Masters (M. Sc. / M.A. ) courses.