MSc Advanced Engineering & Engineering Management South Westphalia University of Applied Sciences

The course is entirely taught in English.

The central aims for the course "Advanced Engineering and Engineering Management" arise out of the changed catalogue of requirements in the area of engineering. Changing working procedures and rationalised processes force engineers to be more and more involved with organisational duties. Key qualifications like team and group work, project organisation, communication and presentation thus become more important as parallel skills and activities alongside the classical technical spectrum of requirements. These requirements can be conveyed by combining the fields of engineering, management, and economics.

The course offers three different pathways: Electronics, Mechanical, and Mechatronic Systems. Students taking the Electronics pathway will take two electronic modules. Likewise, students taking the Mechanical pathway will take two mechanical modules. Students taking the Mechatronics pathway will take one mechanical and one electronic module.

The final project module will be related to the pathway subject.

The course structure has four subject-based components. These are:

• Systems Engineering
• Engineering Management
• Advanced Engineering in
  • Electronic Systems
  • Mechanical Systems
  • Mechatronic Systems
• Research-oriented Project

Only the engineering subject discipline differentiates the taught elements of the course, the other components are common to all pathways. The engineering discipline bears the pathway name.
The course treats the systems approach to engineering as generic; this is reflected in the two systems modules: Intelligent Systems and Advanced Control Technology. A separate module, Systems Engineering, explicitly focuses on the aspect of systems engineering. Engineering management is addressed by three modules: Business in Engineering, Technical Publications and Presentations, and International Project Management. Two advanced engineering modules define the pathway and focus on the application of the generic systems engineering methods in specific application areas. The two electronics modules are Microprocessor Based Systems and Signal Processing. The two mechanical modules are Modelling and Simulation of Mechanical Systems and Advanced Production Engineering. A Master's project module integrates the taught elements of the course. The project can be based on either the engineering pathway or engineering management.

Non-EU applicants:
15 May for the winter semester
15 November for the summer semester

EU applicants:
Please check the university website for the online application deadline.

The teaching strategy for this course is aimed at producing graduates who can be readily employed in engineering-based industrial or research organisations and who have all the skills necessary to succeed. The course is targeted at high calibre students wishing to study in the disciplines of the course and as such it is not suitable for students who merely wish to acquire further knowledge without the application of that knowledge in any meaningful sense. In short, although the course is in many ways generic, it is vocational in terms of systems engineering and engineering management.
Emphasis is placed on imparting the understanding of the subject including essential facts, concepts and principles underlying the subject. This should leave the student with an ability to critically evaluate, design and apply technologies in a systematic manner to engineering and management issues.
For this reason, there are no traditional lectures of the type which merely impart straightforward information. This is too passive a mode of education for students of the 21st century. However, there is still a strong place for the exposition and clarification of themes and difficulties in a lecture-type situation. The acquisition of straightforward knowledge is facilitated by provision of learning material (e.g. via electronic media) and by assigned or recommended reading. The onus for its assimilation is on the students themselves.
One major component of the concept of the course is to enhance the students' research competence. The large amount of coursework assessment in the course demands self-directed studies. Although this coursework is based on the lectures and supervised by tutors, the students are challenged to develop their own solutions by using additional resources. This basis established during the first two semesters is extended further in the final project.

None

No tuition fees

Approximately 303 EUR per semester, including public transport ticket

Approximately 992 EUR per month, including accommodation and student health insurance
(Students applying for a visa must demonstrate funds of 992 EUR per month.)

Applicants must have completed a Bachelor's degree or university diploma in the field of electrical engineering, mechanical engineering or mechatronics, or a comparable degree programme with a predominance of engineering sciences, computer science or software engineering. The final grade must be better than or equivalent to the German grade 2.5.

University certificates must indicate the final grade and include all university end of year exam certificates with individual grades. All certificates must be accompanied by an explanation of the grading system. Copies must be officially authenticated.

Applicants must provide proof of their English skills:

• IELTS 6.5, or
• TOEFL 575 (paper-based), 232 (computer-based), 90 (Internet-based) for results obtained up to 20 January 2026, or
• TOEFL 4.5 for results obtained from 21 January 2026 onwards

As of 21 January 2026, TOEFL iBT results are reported on a new 1–6 score scale. During a transition period, score reports will include both the new 1–6 scale and the former 0–120 scale. Applicants may submit TOEFL results from either scale.

Non-EU applicants:
15 May for the winter semester
15 November for the summer semester

EU applicants:
Please check the university website for the online application deadline.

No

Job opportunities cannot be guaranteed to prospective students. Participants have to verify that they can carry the costs without any additional income.

We will help with finding accommodation either at the Soest campus halls of residence or through private landlords.

South Westphalia University of Applied Sciences has campuses in Hagen, Iserlohn, Meschede, Lüdenscheid and Soest and offers a wide spectrum of studies in modern, trend-setting issues and subjects. This is not a "mass production" university. Studying here is application-oriented, group sizes are manageable, and teaching takes place in a face-to-face situation. In the 2024/2025 winter semester, 10,500 students were enrolled at all campuses.

The university focuses mainly on engineering, natural sciences, information and communication technology, business administration with informatics, and agriculture.

South Westphalia University of Applied Sciences maintains close contacts with industry, agriculture and trade. It is actively involved in working on solutions to current problems in the region, thus gaining experience for application-oriented study. At the university, companies can find expert advice on innovation and technology, and joint projects have often led to the development of product and process innovations. With many final theses being written in cooperation with companies, research and teaching are successfully linked. Several research institutes have been founded and thus the university has broken new ground in the area of cooperation with local industry.

For more details, please visit https://www.fh-swf.de/en/international_3/index.php.

The campus is located a few minutes' walking distance from the city centre. The cosy city of Soest offers everything from shopping to culture as well as historic buildings, traditional restaurants and trendy pubs. Although a thousand years old, it is not in the least antiquated. The surroundings provide all kinds of leisure activities, including water sports. Soest is conveniently located with regard to transport facilities, with regular IC and ICE train connections as well as two nearby airports, Dortmund and Paderborn-Lippstadt.

For a first impression of Soest, please visit https://www.so-ist-soest.de/de-wAssets/docs/service/medienbereich-downloads/WMS_Stadtrundgang_Flyer_englisch_20210224-final.pdf.