Bachelor of Business Administration / International Marketing (BSc) Pforzheim University

All courses are taught in English.

The seven-semester programme offers a degree in business administration with a specialisation in International Marketing. Students study four semesters general business administration courses (e.g. Finance, Accounting, IT, Economics, Law, Statistics, Ethics) and two semesters specialised marketing courses (e.g. Sustainability Marketing, Digital Marketing, Marketing Communications). The study programme is supplemented by a one semester job-specific internship in the field of marketing.

International students who come from abroad to do their Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration/International Marketing at Pforzheim University usually complete all seven semesters in Pforzheim. This gives them the advantage to immerse themselves in the German culture and learn the language – they are then perfectly prepared for jobs in Germany after graduation.

However, students can also spend some time abroad during their studies. This implies that the marketing specialisation is done partly or fully abroad instead of in Pforzheim.

Two options exist:

1. Students spend one semester (fourth semester) abroad at one partner university or even two semesters abroad (fourth and fifth semester) at two different partner universities on two different continents. There are currently around 20 partner universities available worldwide, including: Örebro University, Sweden; Sheffield Hallam University, GB; Yonsei University, Korea; Hong Kong University; American University Kairo, Egypt; Insper, Sao Paulo, Brazil.
    
2. Students spend one year (fourth and fifth semester) abroad at a partner university and acquire a double degree, i.e. the Pforzheim Bachelor’s degree in combination with the foreign degree of the respective partner university. The following 11 partner universities are available for the double degree:
   1. University of Wyoming, USA
   2. Tec de Monterrey, Mexico
   3. ESAN University, Peru
   4. University of Galway, Ireland
   5. IESEG School of Management, Paris, France
   6. Clermont School of Business, France
   7. University of Ljubljana, Slovenia
   8. IQS School of Management, Barcelona, Spain
   9. Iscte Business School, Lisbon, Portugal
   10. Universitas Gadjah Mada, Yogyakarta, Indonesia
   11. Yuan Ze University, Taiwan

Career opportunities:

Graduates achieve high employability and usually work in brand management, market research, advertising, sales, public relations, key account management, category management or management consultancy after graduation. A large percentage also pursues a Master's degree afterwards and is accepted to top schools worldwide.

The programme duration is seven semesters, including the Bachelor’s thesis. Mode of study is in person on-site.

The application deadline for entry in the winter semester is 15 July (the semester begins at the end of September or the beginning of October).

This application deadline applies to both EU and non-EU applicants.

Beforehand, non-EU applicants must submit their university entrance qualification documents for recognition. The deadline for submitting these documents is 31 May. 

The application portal will open towards the end of April/the beginning of May.

There are no tuition fees for German citizens or citizens of EU or EEA countries.

International students who obtained their higher education entrance qualification in a non-EU country are required to pay tuition fees of 1,500 EUR per semester, in accordance with the Baden-Württemberg State University Fees Act. Graduates of German schools abroad (Deutsche Auslandsschulen, DAS) are exempt from these tuition fees.

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Bachelor´s Programme Information Day

The full-time programme comprises seven semesters with 210 ECTS (European Credit Transfer System) credits. Courses are held in English only. The semesters are structured the following way (ECTS of the respective course are in brackets after the course title):

SEMESTER 1

• Social and Methodical Competencies (2)
• Business Administration I (6)
• Information Systems (5)
• Microeconomics (6)
• Contract Law (5)
• Analysis and Linear Algebra (3)
• Financial Mathematics (2)
• Introduction into Marketing (1)

SEMESTER 2

• Business Administration II and Corporate Taxation (5)
• Foundation of Cost and Performance Accounting (5)
• Macroeconomics (5)
• Corporate Law (6)
• Descriptive Statistics (3)
• Mathematical Optimisation (2)
• Fundamentals of Marketing (5)

SEMESTER 3

• Managing Digital Transformation (5)
• Financial Accounting and Financial Management (7)
• International Economics (5)
• Inferential Statistics (3)
• Multivariate Statistical Method (4)
• Consumer and Communication Research (5)
• Preparation for year abroad (1) (optional)

SEMESTER 4 (Marketing specialisation)

• Marketing Communications (5)
• Special Aspects in Marketing (5)
• Electives (12), such as International Marketing (3), Public Relations (3), Customer Journey Management (3) or Social Media Marketing (3)
• Marketing Research Project (8)

SEMESTER 5 (Marketing specialisation)

• Management in Specific Industries (6)
• Quantitative Market Research (9)
• Digitalisation in Marketing (5)
• International Aspects in Marketing (8)

SEMESTER 6

• Internship (29)
• Management Simulation (2)

SEMESTER 7

• Strategic Management (3)
• Management Seminar (5)
• Ethics and Social Responsibility (5)
• Scholarly Colloquium (2)
• Thesis (12)
• Oral Examination (3)

Five to six months internship in sixth semester, mandatory

Varied

There are no tuition fees for German citizens or citizens of EU or EEA countries.

International students who obtained their higher education entrance qualification in a non-EU country are required to pay tuition fees of 1,500 EUR per semester, in accordance with the Baden-Württemberg State University Fees Act. Graduates of German schools abroad (Deutsche Auslandsschulen, DAS) are exempt from these tuition fees.

The university semester contribution amounts to approximately 200 EUR and includes access to regional public transportation.

Student life in Pforzheim is more affordable than in most other German university towns. To cover all expected living expenses — including rent, health insurance, and daily necessities — students typically require between 700 and 900 EUR per month. A room in a student residence costs approximately 300 EUR per month, and a meal in the student cafeteria costs about 4 EUR.

Admission is based on the grade of the applicant's university entrance qualification.

A weighted overall university entrance qualification grade is calculated as follows:

• Average grade of the university entrance qualification = 50%
• Individual grades of the university entrance qualification in mathematics = 30%
• Individual grades of the university entrance qualification in English = 20%

Admission for applicants with a non-EU university entrance qualification need to fulfil two additional requirements:

• Recognition of documents: Applicants have two options for submitting their university entrance qualification documents for recognition:
  • Via the university application portal: Submit your documents directly to the International Office of Pforzheim University through the university's application portal.
  • Via Studienkolleg Konstanz: Submit your documents to Studienkolleg Konstanz (Studienkolleg der Hochschulen für angewandte Wissenschaften in Baden-Württemberg). Important: Please note that the recognition process by Studienkolleg Konstanz may take three to four weeks. Once your documents have been recognised, you must upload the recognition results to the Pforzheim University application portal to complete your application.
• Attend an interview: The interview will be scheduled by the study programme and will take place before 15 July.

Applicants need to prove their English skills:

• TOEFL 72 (IBT), 188 (PBT), 543 (ITP)
• or equivalent IELTS 5.5

This is not necessary if your first degree is from a programme that was entirely taught in English.

The application deadline for entry in the winter semester is 15 July (the semester begins at the end of September or the beginning of October).

This application deadline applies to both EU and non-EU applicants.

Beforehand, non-EU applicants must submit their university entrance qualification documents for recognition. The deadline for submitting these documents is 31 May. 

The application portal will open towards the end of April/the beginning of May.

No

Companies in the region offer working student jobs. For individual students, jobs as student assistants are available at the university.

Accommodation in student dorms are offered close to the campus (via Studierendenwerk Karlsruhe). Many private rooms are also available in the city of Pforzheim and its surroundings. The university provides lists of private rooms and apartments via the International Office.

A semi-annual career fair and various networking events are held on campus.

The university's career centre advises students regarding applications and company contacts. Furthermore, the career centre runs its own online platform on which students can find information on internships and job opportunities.

Pforzheim University

Pforzheim University of Applied Sciences is characterised by its broad range of subjects and its interdisciplinary combination of design, engineering, business and law. Three faculties offer a total of 30 Bachelor’s and 20 Master’s programmes. More than 6,200 students – 3,200 of whom study at the Business School – are taught by 182 professors (96 of them in business and law) and 300 lecturers. In addition to the professors’ research activities, research is organised in seven institutes and several competence centres. Three doctoral programmes, which are run in cooperation with partner universities, provide an opportunity for students to obtain a doctorate.

The Business School

For nearly 60 years, the Business School Pforzheim stands for a sound university education at the highest academic level. Top rankings and the renowned international AACSB accreditation demonstrate that Pforzheim is one of the leading business schools world-wide. Emerged from the "Fachhochschule für Wirtschaft (FHW)", the school offers a wide range of courses consisting of 14 Bachelor’s and 12 Master’s degree programmes. These are clearly aligned with specific job profiles and today‘s requirements of employers. In addition, students can obtain additional qualifications during their studies, which will further enhance their profiles.

The Economic Region

Pforzheim University is located in the south-west of Germany, close to the state capital Stuttgart, in one of Germany's strongest economic regions. Companies such as Porsche, Mercedes Benz, Robert Bosch, SAP, Adolf Würth, Carl Zeiss, Trumpf, Hugo Boss or Alfred Kärcher and many hidden champions are based here. For students, this offers the opportunity to gain practical experience as a working student, to do a voluntary internship during their studies or to write their thesis in cooperation with a company.

The Black Forest

The city of Pforzheim is located between Stuttgart and Karlsruhe. As the gateway to the northern Black Forest, the city and region also offer a wide variety of recreational and sports activities. Hikes or mountain bike tours through the Black Forest, river surfing on the Black Forest Wave in the middle of Pforzheim, bouldering or many other sports - a wide range of leisure activities can be added to your studies.  

For international students, the four seasons are also a reason to come to Pforzheim. The region offers the most hours of sunshine in Germany, but also snow-covered forests for sledging or cross-country skiing in winter.