Partner Companies and Alumni initiate a new Specialisation

2018-06-13

Workshop at the bbw University of Applied Sciences leads to the development of a new field of study related to digitalisation

When corporate strategists, alumni and university representatives sit together and talk about foreseeable developments through digitalisation in companies, ideas for new courses of study sometimes emerge:

On 13th June 2018, the bbw University hosted a working session of the partner companies of the dual bachelor programme Electrical Engineering with professors and former students of the bbw University of Applied Sciences, who are now employees of Deutsche Bahn. The result was the suggestion to the university management to implement a new specialisation direction. It should be called "Information Technology / Digitalisation" (short ITD) and put the operational processes under the requirements of digitisation into the focus of the special studies that students complete in the last semester.

In 2013, the first dual study course in electrical engineering at the bbw University of Applied Sciences with the specialization "control and safety technology" was started in cooperation with Deutsche Bahn. Over the years, additional partner companies such as BVG, Spitzke SE, WSP Infrastructure Engineering GmbH, SIGNON Deutschland GmbH and Gauff Rail Engineering GmbH & Co. KG were added. Since then, company representatives regularly meet on the University Advisory Board and discuss all relevant study topics, graduate profiles, current requirements for graduates, the possibilities and advantages of cooperation and other specialisation opportunities.

In the last working session of the Advisory Council in November 2017, the introduction of a new specialisation direction was already discussed: "Traction power supply and overhead lines" - also a field of work in which the companies involved lack specialists with railway-specific know-how. Therefore, the proposal went directly to the bbw University management. They ensured that the content was elaborated quickly. Meanwhile, the curriculum is available. The certification is completed due to the status of the bbw University. And also everything is clear about the organisation of the studies. Therefore, for the first time in the winter semester 2018/19, the first 12 employees of our partner companies can be enrolled in the bachelor's programme.

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