Electrical Engineering, Information Technology and Business Management
In the scientific degree programme of Electrical Engineering, Information Technology and Business Management, students gain the basic knowledge in engineering and business studies of subjects and capabilities they will need in their later careers to apply scientific methods and knowledge independently. The objective of this degree programme is to educate an engineer not only in terms of technical system capabilities such as in the pure engineering studies, but also to impart competence in the areas of technology and business studies.
Many tasks today in industry, in research facilities, in government agencies and in corporate consultancies consist of technical and economic issues that are frequently very difficult for the pure engineer or the pure economist to address either alone or in collaboration. This is the perfect field of application for industrial engineers. Based on their education, they should be fully capable of in-depth work in either individual discipline.
Particularly due to their interdisciplinary education, industrial engineers can be found in a variety of business sectors and in nearly every technical-business function and operational leadership position. Their significant tasks are: Setting goals, planning, making decisions, organising, leading and controlling. Their target career level is middle to upper management.
The most important areas of activity for industrial engineers are as follows, with some example tasks:
- Research, development: Definition of future areas of work, profitability calculations, cost-optimised development
- Organisation: Development of organisational forms
- Logistics/materials management/purchasing: Planning and implementation of procurement programmes (quantity, scheduling, price)
- Fabrication, production: Preparation of cost-optimum production concepts
- Marketing, sales: Market research, market analysis, sale of technically demanding (investment) goods, development of system solutions, product management
- Accounting, controlling: Analysis of projects for cost-effectiveness
Future career opportunities in the medium to long run are considered good. Starting annual salaries are generally around € 40,000 (2008) on average for university graduates
You can find more detailed information about the Electrical Engineering, Information Technology and Business Management degree programme on the pages of the University.
You can find more information about industrial engineering from the Verband Deutscher Wirtschaftsingenieure e.V. (Association of German Industrial Engineers) on their website (www.vwi.org).