MSc Data Analytics and Decision Science (DDS) RWTH Aachen University

Courses are held in English (100%). Additional German language courses are provided at no extra cost.

Designed for professional data lovers with a STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) background, our Master of Science in Data Analytics and Decision Science (DDS) teaches you a unique set of skills to put data-driven approaches into practice and create value for business from data.

The DDS programme is positioned at the intersection of data analytics and operations research and brings together expertise from a wide range of fields: mathematical optimisation, machine learning, heuristic algorithm, design and simulation. This very unique combination will give you a competitive advantage in your chosen field.

Graduates of the programme are working across all fields and industries. In fact, it is hard to come up with an industry or service that is not directly or indirectly impacted by data and algorithm driven decision making. The competence to derive decisions under uncertain and ever-changing environments is highly sought after in each industry.

Our Master of Science in Data Analytics and Decision Science has a scope of four semesters and 120 CP.

Application for the DDS is possible from 1 October until 31 August for EU applicants and international applicants who hold an academic degree from a European university. For non-EU applicants, our application portal is open from 1 October until and including 1 March. There is no application fee.

Benefit from our early bird discount of 3,000 EUR by submitting your complete application by 15 January!

30,000 EUR for the entire programme

The MSc Data Analytics and Decision Science offers a comprehensive programme of cutting-edge courses and is designed as a full-time experience over the course of four semesters (two years). Our core competency is to teach students in a method-based way to train them to become industry-independent data experts. At the same time, a lot of emphasis is put on practice-oriented modules and dealing with real case studies from various business partners of our ecosystem. An internship additionally secures the well-balanced mix of theory and practice as part of the curriculum. The choice of various elective modules lets students specialise in various sectors to best prepare them for their dream jobs.

Examples of courses include:

• Machine Learning
• Heuristic Optimisation
• Energy and Climate Analytics
• Health Care Analytics & Management
• Management & Technology Perspectives

A mandatory internship is to be completed in the third semester. Apply your skills in an industry work placement at a global enterprise, such as Deutsche Post DHL, BMW, Bosch, or others.

7,500 EUR

30,000 EUR for the entire programme

All students at RWTH Aachen University are subject to the current semester fee of approx. 300 EUR per semester. It includes, among other benefits, a semester ticket covering public transport in the federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia.

A student's average monthly budget amounts to approx. 988 EUR. This includes rent, food, clothing, study material, health insurance, phone, Internet, and radio and television fees as well as expenses for leisure activities. It does not include the semester fee, which must be paid before each semester as part of re-registration. This means that further costs will be incurred at the beginning of the semester.

RWTH Business School is looking for applicants who have a background in a technological area and at least a Bachelor's of Engineering or Science degree in a STEM field (science, technology, engineering and mathematics).

Applicants need at least:

• 125 credit points in mathematics and/or natural sciences (e.g. physics, chemistry, computer science, or similar)
• 15 credit points in the fields of higher mathematics or statistics, database and information systems, programming, algorithms and data structures, complexity theory, quantitative methods / operations research
• 12 months of professional work experience

Certified proof of your competence in the English language is required through the completion of one of the accepted examinations listed below:

• TOEFL Internet-based minimum of 90 points
• IELTS test, minimum overall band score: 6
• Cambridge Test - Certificate in Advanced English (CAE)
• First Certificate in English (FCE), completed with a B
• Placement test of RWTH Aachen University's language centre (B2)

For German applicants: English at level B2 (can be proven by the "Abiturzeugnis")

Application for the DDS is possible from 1 October until 31 August for EU applicants and international applicants who hold an academic degree from a European university. For non-EU applicants, our application portal is open from 1 October until and including 1 March. There is no application fee.

Benefit from our early bird discount of 3,000 EUR by submitting your complete application by 15 January!

RWTH Business School offers various scholarships to support particularly suitable candidates. Please note that the committee's decision will be final and is not subject to legal recourse. Information on our scholarships, the application process as well as external scholarship opportunities can be found on our website.

International students may take up work in the private sector during the semester or the semester break for up to three months without having obtained a work permit. Therefore, students may take up full-time work for 120 days or part-time positions for 240 days. This regulation is also stated on the residence permit. During the semester, students are allowed to take up jobs with working hours of up to 19 hours a week.
Student assistants are more flexible regarding working hours.

Availability of university accommodation in Aachen is limited. Therefore, participation in individual allocation procedures is usually required. Because of the demand for university accommodation, it can be necessary to switch to the private accommodation market.
Especially family and couples apartments are very high in demand, so that accommodation from the private market is seemingly mandatory. The majority of RWTH Aachen University's students are committed to the private accommodation market.
There are a number of options for finding private accommodation in and around Aachen. Accommodation on the private market is priced between 290 EUR and 550 EUR per month, of course depending on the size and the number of rooms.
For short-term accommodation, there are many hotels, a few youth hostels, and a boarding house located in and around Aachen (reservation is recommended).

RWTH International Academy and RWTH Business School provide some rooms for international students in a flat-sharing community.

Our Career Service offers support in the form of advice, events, contacts, or our very own job portal. For instance, it gives students access to a broad network of business contacts and co-operation partners in all sectors of the economy – from start-ups to SMEs and global players – both nationally and internationally.

For more information, check out our homepage.

At the heart of one of Europe's leading technical universities, RWTH Business School combines the disciplines of management and technology in a wide range of continuing education programmes for professionals and executives. The offering includes a total of five MBA and Master's programmes as well as customised exclusive programmes for companies. In all programmes, current findings from engineering and natural sciences are applied to business problem areas to develop innovative approaches to solving future global challenges.

RWTH Aachen Business School gGmbH was opened in 2017 and since then has welcomed around 100 new students from over 30 nations each year. The renowned teaching quality of the AASCB-accredited Faculty of Business and Economics at RWTH Aachen University flows into all programmes.

Key facts:

• year founded: 2016 (first programmes offered in 2004)
• number of students: about 320
• percentage of international students: 75
• number of degree programmes: six
• alumni: more than 500
• number of staff: 15

One of the highlights of our Business School is its location on the RWTH Aachen campus. Research and teaching in Aachen are first and foremost application oriented and targeted at finding practical solutions to real-world challenges. Visible evidence of this is the RWTH Aachen campus, which is being developed in close cooperation with industry and will form one of the largest research parks in Europe.

The RWTH Aachen campus creates a unique symbiosis between the world of research and the world of business. On the campus, interdisciplinary teams of researchers work closely with industry consortia in state-of-the-art buildings that have been explicitly designed and constructed for that purpose. The companies involved share resources with university institutes, exchange knowledge directly on site, and collaborate on innovations for the future. More than 280 companies are currently represented on the RWTH Aachen campus.

Research activities on the campus are structured into long-term clusters, with each cluster located in a different building. A total of 16 clusters are under development, the six initial clusters include the Bio-Medical Engineering cluster, the Sustainable Energy cluster, the Photonics cluster, the Production Engineering cluster, the Heavy-Duty Drives cluster and the Smart Logistics cluster.

The campus project at RWTH Aachen University expands the traditional sphere of pure academic research and provides an ideal environment for innovation. The university will therefore be able to face future global challenges on a much broader scale.

All central facilities and most classrooms of the Business School are located on the RWTH Aachen campus, allowing students to experience the exciting intersection of management and technology first-hand and on a daily basis.