We were very happy to welcome back our third semester students and at the same time take in our new first semester students.   
The new MBA students, who arrived over the last weeks and days gathered for the first time in the MBA classroom, where they finally met their new classmates, who will join them on their journey towards their MBA degree in International Management. Afterwards the MBA students joint the official welcome session for all “newies” at Pforzheim University, followed by a campus tour to their new alma mater.

After a joint lunch, MBA program director Prof. Harald Strotmann introduced the new MBA students to their first semester by having a closer look with them at the curriculum. The first semester concentrates mainly on the business foundation classes in Accounting & Finance, Marketing, Business Functions, Economics, Research Methods and Management Skills, that will all be addressed in individual classes taught by professors from Pforzheim University, guest lecturers as well as international guest professors from the USA and South Africa. Besides those lectures an exciting program of “guest in classroom” talks with key professionals from the industry as well as a two-day field trip with visits to well-known companies is awaiting the first semester students.
An exciting semester also lies ahead of the third semester students, who just returned from a three-day excursion to Frankfurt. Besides the mandatory courses in Innovation & Business Dynamics, Sustainable Globalization and Digital Transformation the third semester offers a variety of elective classes in the fields of Finance & Accounting, Marketing or Consulting from which the students were able to choose, in order to specialize. The Company Project, which is also one of the electives, is a great opportunity to work closely together with a German firm. Divided into project groups, supported by company representatives and supervised by a professor from Pforzheim University the students get the chance to work this semester on real business projects for well-known companies such as Bosch and Accenture.
After the individual launch of the first and third semester, the two batches gathered on the university grounds. During a short introductory round, the first semester students got a chance to finally meet their buddies in person, who had supported them even before their arrival in Pforzheim. Over some drinks and good talks the semester opening was enjoyed by “new” and “old” students alike. Now they are all ready for the winter semester to start.

text and photos: MBA