Logistics – International Management & Consulting (MBA) Ludwigshafen University of Business and Society

Zfh – Zentrum für Fernstudien im Hochschulverbund (centre for distance education in a network of universities of applied sciences)

The programme is supervised by the Rhein-Neckar Graduate School.

This course is taught entirely in English (100%). The Master's thesis has to be written in English.

The postgraduate MBA blended learning programme "Logistics – International Management & Consulting" has been specifically tailored to people who want to do an MBA in logistics and keep working at the same time. With this programme, they can prepare their next career move in supply chain management in order to be able to handle processes at the interface of different disciplines. The programme responds to the high demand for logistics managers with knowledge of modern logistics and understanding of its complexity and experience on an international scale.

This study not only deals with the classic three-dimensional alignment of logistics teaching (business management – IT – technology) but also includes logistics-relevant contents, such as management, consulting, and social competence. It also covers international subjects such as intercultural competence and international logistics management, which is decisive particularly for logisticians in "interface areas" – working across borders, departments, and nations. The extra-occupational concept of the studies permits a high practice relationship during the study programme and direct application of method knowledge on the job.

At our university, we teach logistics in an integrated and interdisciplinary manner and understand global logistics as long-term, sustainable logistics.
The content of the study programme is as follows:

First year – basics:

• General Management
• Law
• Intercultural Competence, Soft Skills & Business Ethics
• Change Management, Project Management
• Extralogistics: Supplier Relationship Management, Distribution Management, Transport
• Intralogistics: Elements of Intralogistics, Logistics Systems in a Digital Factory, Production Management
• Research Competence

Second year – executive knowledge:

• Logistics Management: Lean Management, Logistics Controlling, Supply Chain Management
• Logistics Consulting International: Logistics Management Consulting, Business Process Management, Knowledge Management
• Master's thesis

15 January for the following summer semester
30 June for the following winter semester

The tuition fees have to be paid before the beginning of the new semester after successful admission or re-registration for the next semester. 

In case of a holiday semester, students only have to pay the semester contribution.

This programme is an online distance learning MBA. It is not a full-time programme. All students work full-time and do this MBA "on top". 

You will learn independently with the online platform and material. You will deepen the knowledge within online sessions with teaching methods that are active and promote reflective thinking, such as case studies, exercises in a digital factory, presentations, group work, etc.

With this concept, the course is well integrated into the profession, based on flexible, independent studies using online textbooks and learning materials, learning together via the online platform OpenOLAT as well as the online live sessions!

The total regular study time is four semesters. The first three semesters of the study programme contain online sessions. There are no on-campus courses in Germany! 

The Master's thesis is written in the fourth semester.

The studies are designed as a time- and location-independent online learning concept and are suitable for employees from around the world who would like to acquire further qualifications without interrupting their careers. The teaching contents are mostly provided electronically in the form of texts. The latest trends and insights can thus be integrated and updated at all times.

The study programme does not include an internship since the students are all professionals and most of them are working full-time while studying.

2,250 EUR

The tuition fees have to be paid before the beginning of the new semester after successful admission or re-registration for the next semester. 

In case of a holiday semester, students only have to pay the semester contribution.

Approx. 160 EUR per semester

Students don't need to live in or come to Germany. Therefore, there are no additional costs of living!

(a) Postgraduates (with academic degree of 210 ECTS credit points)

1. Academic degree with a grade of at least 2.5 (according to the German grading system, equivalent to a "good" or lower second)
2. Work experience (at least one year) after the first academic degree in the fields of business administration, technology or IT, respectively, and at least a further year before completing this MBA degree
3. Documentary proof of English language skills (see below)
4. Students with a grade lower than 2.5 (according to the German grading system) must take an admission test (normally feasible in your country and online).
5. Students with an academic degree of only 180 ECTS credit points have to take an extra exam.

(b) Students without an academic degree

1. University entrance qualification (equivalent to the German Hochschulzugangsberechtigung)
2. Certificate of employment which proves significant executive work experience (at least three years), closely aligned to the study programme in the fields of business administration, technology, or IT, respectively
3. Admission test (normally feasible in your country and online)
4. Documentary proof of English language skills (see below)

Applicants must provide documentary proof of English language skills equal to at least level C1 (CEFR) or equivalent, e.g., IELTS 7.0 and higher, CAE, BEC higher, TOEFL iBT 110 - 119, and other known official tests.
We cannot make exceptions. This language level is a requirement for success in the exams and in the Master's thesis.
Applicants do not need to provide any proof of German skills.

15 January for the following summer semester
30 June for the following winter semester

No

Most of the students are already working and participate in this programme at the same time.

The Ludwigshafen University of Business and Society is a university of applied sciences. With more than 4,500 students and about 90 professionally experienced professors and 120 lecturers in four departments, it is actively integrated into the Rhine-Neckar metropolitan region in the south-west of Germany.

Its range of courses includes studies in the areas of economic and social sciences. The relevance of the study courses on practice has been one of the most important focuses right from the beginning, combined with an international orientation. In a dialogue with the economy and its needs, the range of courses is being expanded continually. The university's competence lies in the business management courses with an international alignment. There is an intense mediation of business management functions at the focus of most study courses. The range of studies offered for logistics also targets this area.

It became an independent university of applied sciences in 1996. It was originally part of the University of Applied Sciences of the Rhineland Palatinate, founded in 1971.

The MBA distance learning course Logistics - International Management & Consulting is a shared course of study between the Ludwigshafen University of Business and Society and the zfh - Zentrum für Fernstudien im Hochschulverbund.
The Ludwigshafen University of Business and Society signed the Charta of Diversity in December 2010. The university now belongs to a group of approx. 900 companies and public facilities who consider the introduction of a corporate culture based on recognition and valuation of diversity to be a key factor for their success. In this context, the university of applied sciences considers diversity in its culture and processes, informs and raises awareness among its employees, and reports regularly on current trends, conferences, projects, and many activities.
The Ludwigshafen University stands for...

• mutual respect and valuation
• living diversity and equal opportunities
• reflection and designed change
• dialogue orientation and open-mindedness
• ability to handle criticism and participation

Ludwigshafen is a city in the south-west of Germany. It is located on the Rhine river, opposite Mannheim, and has nearly 164,000 inhabitants. The city is well known as the headquarters of the world's largest chemical company, BASF. With Mannheim and Heidelberg, Ludwigshafen is one of the three big cities of the Rhine-Neckar region, which is the seventh largest economic region in Germany, with 2.3 million inhabitants. The harbour of Ludwigshafen/Mannheim is Europe's second largest inland harbour. Due to its excellent infrastructure connections by river, rail, or road, the core competences of the location are logistics and traffic engineering as well as the chemical industry and health care.