International Business Information Systems (BSc) – Business Management – Computer Science – AI & Data Science Furtwangen University

The Bachelor's programme in Business Information Systems is taught 100% in English.

An optional bilingual degree – with courses in English and German – is available on request.

Digitalisation is the biggest growth market worldwide and is waiting for young talents to shape it! The "International Business Information Systems" Bachelor's programme delivers know-how and key qualifications in digital business, computer science, data science and artificial intelligence for the 21st century. 

Professors with extensive management and research experience teach applicable knowledge and methods to prepare students for careers in business management and consulting.

Four qualities make this programme and faculty unique:

• It is the only accredited Bachelor's programme in Germany in the field of Business Information Systems taught 100 percent in English, combining digital business management with computer science and data science.
• It is the first faculty in Germany that founded Business Information Systems (in 1971).
• It is the only faculty in Germany and the first faculty worldwide that teaches and certifies students as experts in Efficient Resource Planning (ERP) on its own SAP system.
• The faculty has some of the best hardware and software equipment in Germany to teach and train students in data science, big data analysis and eCommerce (eShop Design).

Students benefit from dedicated mentoring and individual talent-based career development plans which, combined with the faculty's excellent reputation and professors with management experience, help them to achieve outstanding career perspectives worldwide.

The Business Information Systems degree programme teaches the theory and practice of business administration in combination with computer science.

Examples of topics students learn during the first three semesters include the following:

• Business Management & Financial Accounting
• Programming Fundamentals
• IT Systems & Network Architectures
• Databases, Applied Mathematics & Statistics
• Digital Marketing & eCommerce

With these fundamentals, students in advanced semesters learn to:

• collect, store and secure data for business strategy and decision-making
• analyse big data for business intelligence reports and controlling
• understand business processes to plan the efficient use of company resources
• configure and apply information technology (IT) to solve and optimise tasks in production, logistics, marketing, and revenue management

Work-based learning right from the start: Professors and industry managers work with students on case studies and hands-on exercises, providing first-hand insight into current topics.

Excellent career perspectives:

• 85 percent of the faculty's international students get a full-time job and stay in Germany.
• Students can meet representatives from more than 90 different companies at the university's career fair twice a year.
• After only one and a half years of study, students have their first opportunity to earn money and carry out IT-related work during an internship.

Choose the best possible start for your business career in Germany and internationally!

Lectures are conducted in hybrid mode. This means students can flexibly choose to attend lectures on-site or simultaneously online.

Enrolled students waiting abroad for a study visa benefit from two advantages: 

• They can start lectures in the first semester from abroad online in interactive form and chat with their professor and classmates online.
• Four out of six exams during the first semester can be completed from a distance / from abroad.

The significant benefit of hybrid lectures lies in their ability to enhance the flexibility and mobility of our students. This is particularly advantageous for those who are juggling part-time employment or residing in a different city, such as Freiburg, rather than Furtwangen.

Most of the exams are conducted supervised and on-site.

Contact: Pavel.Rawe@HS-Furtwangen.de
Prof Dr Pavel Rawe (Dean of studies & Director of the study programme) will guide you through the application process, provides information, and checks eligibility.

Do not apply through HFU Online System (MIO) without prior consultation to avoid invalid application!

Application deadline for early admission:

• 15 June for winter semester (starting 1 October)
• 10 December for summer semester (starting 15 March)

Application deadline for regular admission:

• 15 July for winter semester
• 15 January for summer semester

Application deadline for late admission, if study seats remain available:

• 25 September for winter
• 25 February for summer

Have you missed the regular application deadline?
Please contact the director via e-mail: pavel.rawe@hs-furtwangen.de

There is a 1,500 EUR tuition fee per semester for non-EU citizens.
Students with a European Union citizenship do not pay tuition fees.

The unique International Business Information Systems Bachelor's degree programme at Furtwangen University educates students in three fields of competence: 

• Digital Business Management (digital business models and strategies, agile project management, digital marketing, e-commerce, e-shop design, process analysis, robotic process automation)
• Computer Science (programming in Python and Java, data structures and algorithms, software development, web programming, computer security)
• Data Science and Artificial Intelligence (data bases, business intelligence reporting, big data analysis, deep learning, natural language processing, image processing, machine learning)

The study programme is designed to last seven semesters (three and a half years).

• Each six-month semester consists of lectures and a three-week exam period followed by a break of several weeks.
• The teaching language is English. German language courses at the university are available at no extra charge.

In the first three semesters, students take foundation courses and learn the fundamentals of business management and computer science.


In the fourth semester, students gain practical experience in a paid internship. They spend six months at a company, during which they apply the theoretical knowledge and skills learned.

In the final three semesters, students take advanced courses. Five elective courses may be chosen to acquire deeper knowledge of special subjects of individual interest. Electives can be taken, for example, in app development and advanced programming, performance marketing, data analytics or logistics & digital supply chain management. Elective courses may also be taken at a partner university abroad.

The study programme is completed with the Bachelor's thesis in the seventh semester.

• The thesis is dedicated to research in a topic of the student‘s special interest.
• Students are prepared for the thesis by a dedicated course in scientific working, research methods and academic writing.
• The Bachelor's thesis may be carried out in cooperation with a company to develop a solution for a real-life task.
• A successful thesis carried out in cooperation with a company at the end of a study programme is an advantage for our students, as it might be easier to gain full-time employment in the company afterwards.

Hands-on exercise with technical systems and applied methods in state-of-the-art laboratories are an essential part of the practically-oriented study programme. Students train their skills in various case studies, business projects and software projects.

The study programme can be absolved 100 percent in English – or 33 percent in German in order to achieve a bilingual degree with the German language level of C1. German language courses are available free of charge for enrolled students at the university campus in Furtwangen.

In the fourth or fifth semester, students gain practical hands-on experience in a paid internship. 

• Students spend six months at a company, during which they apply the theoretical knowledge and skills learned in the first three semesters of the study programme.
• Students apply and select a company of their choice. Already in their first semester, students are trained by the faculty in the methods and skills needed to successfully apply for a part-time job, an internship, a thesis job and later a full-time job.

Additionally, the Bachelor's thesis may be carried out in cooperation with a company to develop a solution for a real-life task.

1,500 EUR

There is a 1,500 EUR tuition fee per semester for non-EU citizens.
Students with a European Union citizenship do not pay tuition fees.

130 EUR administration fee per semester

On average, approx. 750 EUR per month including accommodation, food, health insurance and public transport

Academic admission requirements include:

1. Copies of school leaving certificates (and university certificates, if available) must be verified at a German embassy or consulate in the home country of the candidate.
2. These verified copies must be validated by the Studienkolleg Center for International Students in Constance, Germany, to receive acknowledgement of eligibility ("Zeugnisanerkennung").
3. Proof of proficiency in written and spoken English at B2 level (see language requirements)

You can contact Pavel.Rawe@HS-Furtwangen.de (Prof Dr Pavel Rawe, dean of studies and director of the study programme) for help and first-hand information.

No German language is required. 

Applicants are required to prove their proficiency in written and spoken English at B2 level (upper-intermediate level) of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR), or Cambridge FCE level indicated more precisely by one of the following tests:

• DUOLINGO.com online test score minimum 90-100
• TOEFL iBT test score minimum 79 (TOEFL CBT score min. 213, TOEFL PBT min. 550)
• IELTS test score minimum 6.0
• Cambridge English scale minimum 175
• Cambridge English scale minimum 175
• Cambridge Certificate of Proficiency in English, grade B or above
• Cambridge Advanced Certificate in English, grade A
• GCSE in English, grade B or above
• International GCSE in English as a second language, grade B or above
• German Abitur or Fachhochschulreife, English mark of 2.0 (10, 11, 12 points) or above

Alternatively, students may submit a confirmation from their previous university that their education was conducted in English if the student has successfully completed at least one year (two semesters) at a different university – such as in Nigeria or India.

Approved countries for English language proficiency:

• New Zealand
• Australia
• South Africa
• Canada
• United Kingdom
• Ireland
• USA 

Contact: Pavel.Rawe@HS-Furtwangen.de
Prof Dr Pavel Rawe (Dean of studies & Director of the study programme) will guide you through the application process, provides information, and checks eligibility.

Do not apply through HFU Online System (MIO) without prior consultation to avoid invalid application!

Application deadline for early admission:

• 15 June for winter semester (starting 1 October)
• 10 December for summer semester (starting 15 March)

Application deadline for regular admission:

• 15 July for winter semester
• 15 January for summer semester

Application deadline for late admission, if study seats remain available:

• 25 September for winter
• 25 February for summer

Have you missed the regular application deadline?
Please contact the director via e-mail: pavel.rawe@hs-furtwangen.de

Option one: The Germany Scholarship supports particularly gifted students whose background suggests that they will be particularly successful in their studies and career. Besides outstanding academic grades, a commitment to social causes and special personal achievements (for example, the overcoming of personal obstacles in one's academic background) are taken into consideration in the selection process for the Germany Scholarships. The scholarship is awarded for a minimum of two semesters and is normally only granted for the duration of the regular study period. The Germany Scholarship is awarded by the university. The application period is announced well in advance. (Only matriculated students may apply.)

Option two: DAAD Stibet Programme (only matriculated students may apply), deadlines 1 March and 1 September

For further information please contact pavel.rawe@hs-furtwangen.de.

65 percent of students in the Business Information Systems department have a part-time job, working two days a week. 

• Students can get in contact with more than 90 regional and international companies at a job fair organised by Furtwangen University at the campus twice a year.
• Enrolled students find hundreds of available part-time jobs, internships, thesis jobs and full-time jobs at the job portal of Furtwangen University.
• Student Support Manager supplies enrolled students regularly with current offers for part-time jobs at regional companies.
• Hybrid mode of lectures in presence and simultaneously online supports the students' flexibility and mobility to manage a part-time job.

Enrolled students who learn to speak fluent German (B2) may apply for a Cooperative Trainee Programme. This is a paid traineeship integrated in the study programme. Students participating in this programme earn approx. 850 EUR per month and work only during lecture-free periods, and they also work in the fourth and seventh semester while working on their theses in cooperation with the company.

For further information, please contact the director of the international study programme: pavel.rawe@hs-furtwangen.de.

The cost of accommodation in a shared student apartment in Furtwangen start at approx. 195 EUR per month.

There is a variety of available student accommodation facilities for 230 EUR. Furtwangen has the lowest cost of accommodation in Germany.

The student support manager at Business Information Systems has prepared a directory of accommodation facilities for enrolled students in Furtwangen.

Furtwangen University and in particular the study programme International Business Information Systems is highly job-focused. This entails the following:

• Dedicated talent-oriented development plans for each student worked out with his/her counselling professor
• Mentoring and training in job application skills
• Furtwangen University's online job portal with thousands of available jobs
• Job fair taking place at the university campus two times a year with more than 90 local and international companies participating

Furtwangen University of Applied Sciences is a leading, state-run university of applied sciences in the south-west of Germany. The university was founded in 1850 and has nine departments and offers 50+ fully accredited degree programmes, mainly in the fields of technology, health, and business. The excellent facilities include modern lecture halls, an outstanding IT infrastructure, cutting-edge laboratories, and one of the best academic libraries in Germany.

In the International Student Barometer, Furtwangen University was ranked one of the best universities in Germany in the following areas:

• Study programme organisation (second place)
• Quality of lectures (third place)
• Class size and learning support by professors (third place)
• Support through buddy programme (third place)
• Internationally oriented lectures (third place) and
• Host culture (second place).

Benefit from the welcoming culture of Furtwangen University!

Furtwangen is a safe, friendly and peaceful town with 9,000 inhabitants and 3,500 students. The town benefits from a healthy climate being situated in the heart of the beautiful Black Forest surrounded by lakes, mountains and ski resorts. Furtwangen has the advantage of low costs of living and a high level of employment thanks to the many successful companies located in the area. Both France and Switzerland are within driving distance by car or public bus and train. It is the ideal place to enjoy the great outdoors and to explore the culture that the nearby cities of Freiburg, Heidelberg, Baden-Baden, Stuttgart, Strasbourg, Basel or Zurich have to offer.

Furtwangen is located in one of the most prosperous states in Germany (Baden-Württemberg). This is the state with the highest level of research and development, an employment rate of 97 percent (2018) and many well-known international companies such as Daimler, Porsche, Bosch, Siemens, Hugo Boss and SAP. This innovative, highly industrialised region is one of the "Four Motors of Europe". Additionally, it is the most popular destination for immigrants to Germany; in 2013, 28 percent of the population had a migrant background.

The unique Bachelor's programme International Business Information Systems (IBS) is the only one at Furtwangen University conducted in hybrid form: students can attend the lectures online in real-time and interactive form. This is a great advantage for IBS students supporting their flexibility and mobility as they may live and work (part-time job, working student job) across Germany in cities such as Berlin, Stuttgart, Karlsruhe, Mannheim or Freiburg.