FH Aachen and RWTH Aachen Joint Project Receives Award from Ministry

05/06/2014

The FH Aachen and RWTH Aachen are using a joint project to support future students more in assessing their potential for a course of study or subject.

 

This should result in an improvement in conditions for students starting studies and reducing the dropout rate. The initiative, developed by Vice-Rectors for Teaching, Professor Aloys Krieg, RWTH, and Professor Norbert Janz, FH, and the AStA Chairs, Georg Vonhasselt, RWTH, and Andreas Jendrzey, FH, will be funded by the NRW Ministry of Innovation, Science, and Research from 2014 to 2017 for a total of 1.25 million Euros per university.

The collaborative project is pursuing multiple goals:

  • Smooth transition from school to university
  • Introduction to independently organized learning and working in study groups
  • Acquisition of background knowledge necessary for engineering studies
  • Qualification for broad engineering fields
  • Orientation towards content in engineering courses of study

Aside from the traditional start to studies in winter semester at both universities, "Guter Studienstart im Ingenieurbereich" should enable a completely new type of start to studies in summer semester. Participants do not have to select a concrete course of study at either of the universities. The program supports the upcoming students with selecting a subject and type of university, promoting self-reflection and organization. Ideally, first-year students will find the right course of study without delays or detours – and begin their studies with a high degree of involvement and chances for success. Additionally, those students who began in winter semester but are having difficulties attaining their academic goals, can intensively repeat the material during their second semester and if necessary, re-orient themselves.

There are different modules within the framework of the program. There is an introductory week at the beginning, during which the young students learn about the demands at university and how they can adjust to the new environment. During the first semester there are student tutorials, joint study groups, presentations on the courses of study and career profiles, courses and exercises on fundamentals – above all in mathematics – an elective component with a broad spectrum of information offered.

All components of the program are open to students from both universities. The respective examination boards will decide in advance how credit for modules will be granted, so that it is clear what individual modules can be used for. RWTH Aachen and the FH are starting with 200 spots. Both universities will sign a partnership agreement, and there will be a joint course of study committee headed by both Vice-Rectors for Teaching.

All of the projects that received the award will be honored during a workshop on June 30, 2014, in Düsseldorf at the North Rhine-Westphalian Academy of Sciences, Humanities and the Arts . Twenty universities and universities of applied sciences participated in the "Guter Studienstart" competition. A jury selected four projects that the Ministry of Science is now funding with 1.25 million Euros per university for a period of four years:

  • University of Bielefeld: "Gemeinsam anfangen – durch Austausch lernen“
  • Cologne University of Applied Sciences: "Come in – Commit“
  • University of Siegen: "Brücken ins Studium“
  • RWTH Aachen and FH Aachen: "Guter Studienstart im Ingenieurbereich“