Ulrich Müller studied Pre- and Protohistoric Archaeology, History, and Geography at the universities of Kiel, Mainz, and Konstanz. He received his doctorate from Kiel University in 1992 with a dissertation on wooden artefacts from Konstanz and Freiburg. In 2000, he completed his habilitation at the University of Greifswald with a study on the semiotics of medieval hand-washing equipment. He subsequently worked as an archaeologist in Lübeck and held teaching positions at the universities of Greifswald, Freiburg, and Bergen. Since 2004, he has been Full Professor of Historical Archaeology at Kiel University.