The history of engineering university in Indonesia dates back to the 20th century, when the Dutch colonial government established De Technische Hoogeschool te Bandung (THS) on July 3, 1920, on a 30-hectare plot of land in Bandung. At that time, there was only one faculty, de Faculteit van Technische Wetenschap and only one major, namely de afdeeling der We gen Waterbouw. The establishment of this engineering school was to fulfill the needs of technical personnel or engineers due to the outbreak of the First World War.

The first academic year of TH Bandung, 1920-1921, was unique because TH Bandung only got 28 students, and two of them are Indonesian. Meanwhile, there were 12 professors at the beginning of 1922. Four years later, on July 4, 1924, twelve students graduated from TH Bandung. TH Bandung was a Bijzondere School, which later changed its status as a state-owned campus.

On July 3, 1926, the 6th Anniversary of TH Bandung students graduated as engineers and 4 of them are Indonesian. That moment is remarked as the first time Indonesian engineers have graduated from TH Bandung. Our Founding Father, Ir. Soekarno, was one of the graduates. Later, he became the First President of the Republic of Indonesia.

During the Japanese occupation in 1944-1945, TH changed its name to Bandung Kogyo Daigaku (BKD) and became Bandung Technical College (Sekolah Tinggi Teknik Bandung) after Indonesia's independence. Furthermore, in 1946, STT Bandung had moved to Yogyakarta as "STT Bandung in Jogja”, which later became Gadjah Mada University (UGM).

On June 21, 1964, STT Bandung changed its name into Universiteit Van Indonesie under the control of NICA with Faculteit van Technische Wetenschap, and Faculteit van Exacte Wetenschap which were established later. After a long story, in 1950-1959, Universiteit Van Indonesie joined University of Indonesia as Faculty of Engineering and Faculty of Natural Sciences.

Encouraged by ideas and beliefs based on Indonesian’s struggle to get independence and our bright future, the Indonesian Government inaugurated the establishment of Bandung Institute of Technology on March 2,1959. In contrast to the five previous engineering school on the same campus, Institut Teknologi Bandung was born in an atmosphere full of dynamics, carrying the mission of devotion to science and technology, and building a developed generation for the future.

During the first decade of the 1960s, ITB began to foster up and develop itself with the statutes. During this period, preparations were made regarding the educational and teaching organizations, while also fulfilling the number of teaching staff and increasing their skill by assigning them to study abroad.

During the second decade of the 1970s, ITB was muddled with difficulty that arose towards the first period. The academic unit that had been formed was transformed into a work unit that also concurrently functions as a socio-economic unit that is limited to being a semi-autonomous institution. The level of academics was increasing, but the assignment to study abroad was decreasing. Internal facilities and statutes were increasingly utilized.

During the third decade of the 1980s, ITB’s improvement is marked by the movement of the statutes and teaching-learning process towards a modern era that was equipped with more campus facilities. The number of graduates increased, and postgraduate programs had also begun to start. This situation was supported by the improvement of the country’s socio-political and economic growth.

During the fourth decade of the 1990s, the engineering university that priorly only had one department, now offers twenty-six Bachelor Program Departments, including the Department of Socio-technology, along with thirty-four Master Programs, and three Doctoral Studies. These programs include the elements of science, technology, art, business, and humanities.

This decade led ITB to a new century that is marked by the emergence of better concepts and ideas for its development process. Some of them include:

• That the rapid growth of information flow in the new century will demand an education that is accelerated, timely, integrated, sustainable, and the best investment effort. Related to this, ITB is willing to build its Bachelor Program on a solid foundation of basic science proficiency so that its graduates will be able to adapt to rapid environmental changes. Meanwhile, the Postgraduate Program is the pioneer to enhancing quality and quantity, efficiency, and effectiveness, as well as its relevance towards the needs, so that ITB’s contribution to the national development will be greater and more meaningful.
• That the proficiency and development of science and technology must be carried out intact and integrated, as in the role of Research and Development University. ITB’s development in science and technology is based on the purpose to boost the nation’s development plan. Therefore, ITB will develop itself in research and manufacture, communication and information technology, land-sea and aerospace transportation, environment, and biotechnology and biosciences.
• That the mission of community service is expected to be able to build business insights into independence, which is the initial capital for the maintenance of higher education autonomy. Business insight for independence is directed to reach actionable achievement and the duty of education and academic as high as possible.
• That the development of ITB will be based on the strengths of the institution in the form of optimum use of information, the maintenance of competent teaching staff with high quality skills and high devotion, integrated education system, and close collaboration with government, industry, research institutions, as well as domestic and overseas education institutions. The development is expected to be monitored and measured so it is in line with the Three Pillars of Higher Education, development of human resources, facilities, standard and work procedures, as well as the economic, socio-cultural and safety development.
• That the willingness to develop ITB is reflected by the excitement and mindset of all ITB stakeholders who acknowledge the nature of scientific fact; that the scientific reality can be reached by observation, followed by logical study. That the discovery of scientific truth is the right of every human beings, so that science and technology can be used to improve human welfare in the world, especially in Indonesia.

In the fifth decade of the 2000s, Institut Teknologi Bandung’s legal status was set to be State-Owned University according to the Government Regulation No. 155 of 2000 on December 26, 2000.

State-Owned Universities were something unique and new by then. This began with the issuance of Government Regulation No. 61 of 1999 on the Establishment of State-Owned Universities as Legal Body, followed by the issuance of Government Regulation No. 155 of 2000 on the Establishment of Institut Teknologi Bandung as State-Owned University. Thus, with the issuance of the latter regulation, ITB has legally become a legal body. This means ITB had the right to carry out legal actions as long as following valid regulations. With the issuance of Government Regulation No. 61 of 1999, rivalry between universities, which was driven by globalization, became the first consideration. So, to boost competitiveness, Indonesia needs universities that can create democratic, independent citizens that can compete globally. In order to achieve that, universities, including ITB, need to be independent, autonomous, and thus having bigger responsibilities.

On July 3, 2020, ITB celebrates its 100th year anniversary. Now ITB has graduated 120.000 alumni who have significant roles in developing the country. ITB now has 12 Faculties/Schools, 128 study programs, 111 research groups, 25 centers, 7 research centers, and 7 centers of excellence. Currently ITB has more than 26 thousand active students, 1.510 academic staffs, and 195 professors. ITB now has two main campus; Ganesa Campus and Jatinangor Campus. ITB has also become the leading national university, and a leader in the development of research, technology, and arts in Indonesia.