Portrait of Pforzheim University 

The establishment and historical development of the Pforzheim University is linked in many ways to the evolvement of the regional economy which today is one of Europe's leading business regions. The demand for specialists in the various fields of the jewellery industry over the last 130 years has resulted in the development of an important applied university of sciences with a variety of studies which is second to none in Germany.

Pforzheim University with around 5,000 students is one of the largest of its kind in the German state of Baden-Württemberg. The amalgamation of the two former independent and successful universities of applied sciences for design and economics in 1992 laid the foundation for the engineering department of the university. Today, Pforzheim University for design, engineering, economics and law considers itself an impetus to society and a model for contact with people, resources and ideas. Studies and applied research serve to achieve excellent results in the field of design, engineering and economics. After completion of their studies, university graduates are able to think and act according to their practical needs in an intercultural manner.

The unique diversity of specialisation areas on the basis of established fundamental studies is an excellent preparation for technical and management tasks for the students. The School of Design offers a wide spectrum of attractive studies with regard to Jewellery and Objects of daily life, Accessory Design, Intermedial Design, Visual Communication, Industrial Design and Fashion and Transportation Design. The School of Engineering includes studies in the fields of Electrical Engineering / Information Technology, Mechanical Engineering/Product Development, Mechanical Engineering/Production Engineering, Business Administration and Engineering, Business Administration and Engineering/General Management, Business Administration and Engineering/Global Process Management, Mechatronics and Technical Information Technology.

The most extensive course syllabus is offered by the Business School. Degree courses are offered which focus on Purchasing and Logistics, International Marketing, Marketing, Market and Communication Research, Advertising, Controlling, Finance and Accounting, Taxation and Auditing, Business Information Systems, International Business, Resource Efficiency Management and Human Resources Management. Pforzheim University has offered a degree course in business law since 1996. In addition, Pforzheim University has a wide choice of master's degrees from all of the faculties.

The international office has contact to more than 100 partner universities around the world. This enables support for students who wish to complete a part of their studies abroad in order to gain valuable experience relevant to their studies. Knowledge of foreign languages and an understanding of intercultural matters have become essential in the modern era of globalisation.

Interdisciplinary thinking at Pforzheim University is not merely a question of administration. In fact courses which overlap between different faculties are better able to reflect the reality of daily life where business graduates work closely together with engineers and designers. The interdisciplinary spirit also has a great role to play in the development and arrangement of the bachelor and master's degrees. The combination and development of the distinctive range of courses available and the quality and topicality of the courses make an especially important contribution to the success of the university. The positive synergy effects through the linking of theory and practice is documented in numerous projects and research activities carried out in co-operation with industry and the business community. The Institute for Applied Research, numerous Steinbeis transfer centres and the Jewellery Technology Institute are just some of the examples of this co-operation.

In Pforzheim the person remains the focal point despite the diversity of degree courses and volume of students. More than 350 professors, tutors and their staff intensively take care of the students. Students are given support right from the start of their studies and often even after the course has ended, whereby many professors take on the important role of mentor.

Pforzheim University has also extended its infrastructure in particular with regard to the criteria for quality which make a location attractive for a university, i.e. the degree courses on offer, the quality of the courses, the care taken of the students and orientation towards practical needs. The establishment of a new library has enabled the university to significantly improve the daily life of the students. The new library currently includes 200,000 books and 500 magazines covering the main areas of business and economics, law and social science, and courses related to engineering. Furthermore, the media library has many computer terminals available for exploiting digital media and carrying out internet research. The use of information and communication technology has steadily expanded in terms of quantity and quality.

The university computer centre offers support to enable practical education in the field of information technology.

Additional central facilities, student organisations, institutes and study groups also serve to create an attractive university atmosphere and enrich the range of a successful student's day in many ways.

In the business world the quality of the university graduates from Pforzheim is common knowledge. In terms of the acceptability of graduates from Pforzheim, the university has time and time again been assessed as one of the top German universities. The care with which the university handles the academic education is one reason why many university graduates from Pforzheim University are sought-after employees in well-known companies.

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