International Experience in Work-Integrated Studies

Auslandserfahrungen im praxisintegrierten Studium - Auslandssemester in Kanada

Note on the validity of the information on this page

This page primarily refers to the work-integrated engineering programmes as well as the work-integrated programmes Business Administration and Business Information Systems.


On this page, you will find information on various ways to gain international experience within the framework of work-integrated studies. In principle, students in these programmes will have the same options as full-time students, taking into account the special structures of work-integrated programmes.

Advice on the organisation of stays abroad in work-integrated studies

Whichever type of stay abroad you plan, always make sure to talk to your company about a possible stay abroad during the academic or work term well in advance.

Current calls for applications for students

On the Offers and Events page (German only), you will find calls for applications and other offers that may also be relevant for students in work-integrated programmes. Do have a look – it might be worth it!

 

Semester abroad in work-integrated studies

Please find information useful for preparing and applying for a semester abroad at this link: Semester Abroad.

You should take particular notice of these steps:

Check experience reports

You can read the experience reports of other students in work-integrated programmes on ILIAS.

You will also find the document Tipps für das Auslandssemester im praxisintegrierten Studium [currently only available in German] there.

Where can I go for my semester abroad?

In the download box, you will find an overview of the partner universities that are most suitable for students in work-integrated programmes due to their semester/trimester periods. However, your choice is not limited to these – you can apply to any other of your faculty’s partner universities.

Take a closer look at the lecture/exam periods of the universities abroad. In most cases, the semester periods will not match your academic terms. It is thus especially important to talk to your company whether you can still spend a full semester abroad. Universities that offer teaching in trimesters (e.g., some universities in North America or Scandinavia) may be interesting here, as these are shorter than semesters.

Make arrangements before applying

Once you have done some research on the universities, talk about your plans with the director of your study programme and with your company early on. You should determine which semester is suitable for your stay abroad and which module examinations can be recognised for your studies at home. Also clarify whether you might miss exams because of your stay abroad and when you could resit them.

Check funding

For many scholarships, you can even apply if you already receive a salary.

Internship (work experience) abroad

Ask about the possibility of completing a work term in a foreign branch of your company. Internships (work experience) abroad can be funded with scholarships. You can read the experience reports of other students in work-integrated programmes on ILIAS.

More information – internship abroad

Short stays

You may also consider a short stay abroad (about 2–6 weeks). This includes, for example, stays in a foreign branch of your company to prepare your thesis or summer or winter schools (a compact course at a university abroad). Some of these are also organised through programmes with scholarships such as Fulbright, GoEast or DHIK. You can read the experience reports of other students in work-integrated programmes on ILIAS.

Language courses
Notifying the Registrar’s and Examination Office of study-related stays abroad

According to Section 4 of the Higher Education Statistics Act (Hochschulstatistikgesetz, HStatG), German universities’ registrar’s offices are obliged to provide information on temporary study-related stays abroad as well as the number of ECTS points earned abroad that are recognised at the respective university in Germany for the study programme to the competent statistical office of the Land as part of the official examination statistics.

The study-related international experience/stays abroad that you have completed will be listed in the appendix “Certificate of recorded study-related international experience” as part of your degree documents. The transcript of records (ToR) will only include examination achievements, i.e. examinations that were taken during a stay abroad and subsequently credited to modules at HSBI. These will not appear again on the above-mentioned certificate.

In the download box on this page, you will find the form Mitteilung von studienbezogener Auslandserfahrung [currently only available in German], which you should submit to the Registrar’s and Examination Office along with the necessary proof after every study-related stay abroad or every type of international experience, but at the latest before you receive your degree certificate. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact us.