Business Administration and Engineering: Civil Engineering B.Sc.

 

Personnel placement, material costs, time investment, transport costs, sustainability, and energy efficiency - the interest in economic questions in the last decades has grown for the classic civil engineering specialization fields.

Plans, implementations, and interactions in not only construction management, but also in structural areas, in structural and underground engineering, hydraulic engineering and transport management must be economical. Here, the industrial engineers with a specialization in civil engineering can provide their skills in this cross-section.

The course of study Business Administration and Engineering with a Specialization in Civil Engineering at RWTH has a strong technical component in contrast to the programs at other universities and equips its students not only with economic expertise but also engineering expertise.

Students first acquire fundamental, theoretical knowledge: challenging studies in mathematics and mechanics provide the necessary understanding for technical principles, structuring concepts, and complex processes. The engineering units are supplemented with comprehensive units in business administration.

Starting in the third semester, students select a specialization from four options:

• Civil Engineering teaches a basic understanding of load-bearing behavior, design, design and assessment of load-bearing structures, and the selection of the correct building materials taking technical and economic aspects into consideration. Possible fields of application include design, calculations, construction, execution of construction work, and research and development.
• Construction Management and Geotechnical Engineering creates solutions for economically optimized and energy efficient construction – for example for the control of relevant planning and building processes for complex large projects. A further focus is elaborate construction and design methods in geotechnical engineering such as in tunnel, dam, and dam wall construction and in rock mechanics and construction.
• Water Sciences focuses on the planning, construction, and operation of hydraulic structures such as levees, barrages, water supply institutions, and waster management facility plants. Important aspects are functionality, stability, environmental sustainability, and water management sustainability.
• Transport and Spatial Planning focuses on the construction and operation of transport infrastructures, mobiilty, and transport. Typical fields of application include spatial, regional, and urban planning as well as the construction and operation of streets, rail connections, and airports.

 

Degree Content

In order to enroll students must submit documentation of a four-week preinternship, during which prospective students get a first look at different shareholders involved in construction.

An institute internship during the studies offers students the possibility to get a look at independent scientific work in one of RWTH's own institutes and to learn research and application-oriented methods.

Curriculum

Semester	Engineering Foundation	Mathematics and Natural Science Foundation	Business and Economics Foundation
1 to 3	Mechanics I and II, Construction Materials Science, Fundamentals of Support Structures, Physics of Construction, Building Construction	Mathematics I and II, Applied Statistics, Construction Computer Science	Principles of Management, Decision Making, Introduction to Economics, Sales and Purchasing, Production and Logistics, Bookkeeping and Managerial Accounting
	Modules from the selected specialization
4 to 6	Planning Methodology, Preparation and Implementation of Construction Projects in the Life Cycle	Geodesy	Quantitative Methods of Economics, Investment and Financing, Macroeconomics: Markets and Strategic Decision-Making, Elective Module, Human Resource Management and Organization, Introduction to Empirical Economic Research
	Modules from the selected specialization
	Institute internship, Bachelor's thesis

The detailed course of study layout is regularly published as addendum of the respective current exam regulations. You can find the link to the exam regulations at the bottom of this website.

Programs Abroad

Engineers, who received their training in Germany, have always been in demand on the world job market. International experiences for budding civil engineers are becoming more important and often play a decisive role for one's later career path. Studies or internships abroad offer not only a deeper understanding of the subject but also of the culture and communication skills.

The Faculty of Civil Engineering offers partnership programs with outstanding European and non-European universities to students even in their Bachelor's studies. Study opportunities are offered worldwide in addition to the EU mobility program ERASMUS+. The Faculty's membership in various research associations makes it possible to complete course components, final projects, and parts of the industry institute in one of many international programs.

RWTH students profit not only from the Faculty's exchange programs but also from the University's strategic partnerships with international universities. They can, for example, complete short stays at one of the IDEA League universities while completing a term paper. The UROP Abroad program, the only one of its kind in Germay, offers the possibility to participate in research projects at international universities during Bachelor studies. These stays abroad are partially funded by RWTH-specific funding.

 

Prerequisites

Personal Prerequisites

Students in industrial engineering must have diverse interests. There is engineering, technical, mathematic, natural science, and business content and thinking as part of the studies. Good foreign language skills and good communication skills in general are also important prerequisites for later careers. Mathematics is an indispensable foundation for business and economics and for a technical perspective. In its bridge program RWTH Aahen offers prospective students the possibility to refresh their mathematics skills and advance them.

Enrollment Prerequisites

1. Pre-internship

The pre-internship consists of a four week building practice activity in a building firm. Interns should play an active hands on roll and learn to understand building processes. An overview of pratical construction processes can be flanked by a maximum of two weeks in planning and administrative activities. We recommend looking into the building practices beyond the required duration, in order to also evaluate your choice of a course of study. Legal guidelines for the pre-internship can be found in the appendix of the exam regulations. The Faculty's Internship Office can answer any questions.

2. Self Assessments

When enrolling, students must submit proof that they took the two self assessments below. This is not required at the time of application.

RWTH "Civil Engineering" Self Assessment and

RWTH "Economics" Self Assessment

 

Decision Aids

Students in industrial engineering courses of study are focusing more and more on technical and business subjects equally. Those more interested in construction should find out more about the civil engineering Bachelor course of study, in which students pick two of the four technical specializations. Individuals more interested in business and economics should look at the business administration course of study. It is helpful to attend lectures before studies begin. You can also gather initial impressions at the Schüleruni, during the university visitation week, or in sample studies for girls.

 

Career Prospects

Industrial engineers take on work that requires interdisciplinary skills. They work, for example, in construction management, marketing, controlling, purchasing, logistics, and facility and project management. They collaborate not only with different specialists but also ensure that this collaboration works efficiently.

Based on their individual specialization they may manage large construction sites, infrastructure projects – such as the expansion of rail or road networks or airports – and national and international logistical networks or municipal and national water supply systems.

As interdisciplinary experts with an economics background they always have an eye on the global market, company balances, relevant legal framework conditions, and economic prognoses.

You can find detailed figures in the current publication from the Federal Employment Agency: Job Market for Academics - Engineering.

 

Master's Degree Prospects

In the Industrial Engineering with a Specialization in Civil Engineering Master's program students specialize in one of the previously mentioned specializations. They can then choose their specialization freely but we recommend choosing the same specialization as was studied during the Bachelor.

To supplement their technical curriculum they choose one of four economic research areas or the field General Business and Economics and build their own skill profile.

Furthermore graduates – when necessary with adjustments – can also be admitted to the Faculty's other Master's courses of study: Civil Engineering, Environmental Engineering, Transport Engineering and Mobility. If a student wishes to change their discipline, it is necessary to speak with departmental advising as well as adjust their Bachelor's studies as early as possible.

 

Examination Regulations

Regulations that apply for all Bachelor and Master courses of study as well as detailed information about the necessary documentation of required language skills can be found in RWTH’s Comprehensive Examination Regulation. Examination regulations are only published in German as they are legally binding.

Subject Specific Exam Regulations regulate academic goals, the course of study layout, and exam procedures. The appendix to the regulations contains the description of the modules, from which the course of study is composed.

 

Faculty

The Bachelor course of study Industrial Engineering B.Sc., Specialization in Civil Engineering is offered by the Faculty of Civil Engineering in collaboration with the School of Business and Economics.

The Faculty represents outstanding diversity in research focuses and scientific collaborations. It offers not only classic civil engineering courses of study but also interdisciplinary study programs such as Environmental Engineering and Transport Engineering and Mobility.