The new semester has officially started!

In a semester opening session, Prof. Harald Strotmann, program director and vice dean of Business PF, welcomed all new MBA students at the university. During an informal get-together after the official part, 1st and 3rd semester MBA students had the chance to meet and exchange for the first time.

12 students from diverse backgrounds represent the new MBA class. They come from China, India, Pakistan, and Romania. In the summer semester, they will be joined by business graduates to complete their class. After the new students were introduced to the university and the MBA program, they received their semester schedule. The first semester builds solid foundations in business skills, with classes like Micro- and Macroeconomics, Financial accounting and Marketing. Besides theory, the upcoming months will include a company visit to Hugo Boss, and guest talks by 1&1 Telecommunication, trivagoZF Friedrichshafen and X-Ray Lab. During a two-day excursion, the new students will visit BOS, Teva, and Voith in the Ulm Area.

This semester, the 3rd semester MBA students get involved in four company projects with Bechtle, Bosch, Frankotyp Postalia, and Winterhalter. The third semester is very individualized, as the students mainly take electives from the fields marketing, consulting or finance. At the end of October, the Pforzheim batch will be joined by MBA students from the University of Wyoming for one week of group work and company visits. Under the title „Innovation and New Strategies in a Globalized World“, the students work together in teams on market access strategies. The week also includes several company visits in Frankfurt and Southern Germany like Clariant, Kärcher and Blanco as well as the ECB.

After the official information session, MBA students from both batches got together for Swanbian Brezels and the typical German “Apfelschorle” in the MBA room. Upcoming events over the next few days will be a city walking tour through Pforzheim, a guided library tour, and a bowling team building event. May this prelude be followed by a great semester!