Programme with extended practice: Bachelor’s degrees

The programme with extended practice combines a regular bachelor’s degree programme at the university with intensive practical placements relating to your academic subject matter with one of our partners.

Dual system students complete intensive practical blocks in their company during lecture-free periods, the practical semester and while writing their bachelor’s or master’s thesis. You will be involved in various projects, ideally rotating between different departments, and might also get the chance to manage your own small projects as you progress.

There are carefully planned alternating blocks split between theory and practice, based on the usual structure of the degree programme in question. Whether you continue to work in the company during the theoretical elements of your training at the university of applied sciences depends on your employer.

This gives companies an ideal opportunity to already introduce young people while they are studying to the specific tasks they will be expected to perform later on in their professional lives. In turn, students already gain initial insights into their range of tasks.

The sandwich programme with extended practice rounds off with a vocationally based bachelor’s thesis produced in your choice of host company.

Dual / cooperative bachelor’s degree programmes

How does the programme with extended practice work?

Do you feel that a regular degree programme would be too theoretical and you’d rather also gain useful practical experience from the start? The programme with extended practice combines a regular bachelor’s degree programme at the university with intensive practical placements relating to your academic subject matter with one of our partners.

Duration: 3.5 years (incl. 16 months of work experience and 3 months spent writing your bachelor’s thesis)
Award: Bachelor’s degree (B.A., B.Eng., B.Sc., LL.B.)

Are you interested in studying a degree programmethat enables you to gain extended practical experience? You can browse the range of options in the list of “Dual / cooperative study options”.

Once you have found the right one for you, there are two ways that you can apply for a place to study with extended practice.

Either apply for a place directly with one of the companies that cooperates with our university on your chosen degree programme; Or propose a company that would like to train you this way, even if it’s not yet on our list, and we’ll be happy to establish a partnership.
Once you have signed your employment contract with the company, you can then apply for a place to study at our university of applied sciences. Please note that applicants for dual / cooperative degree programmes must also attain the required grades for courses with limited intake. Once you’ve done all that, you’re ready to roll!
Another option for embarking upon a programme with extended practice is to start studying first and then once you’re already a student (during semesters 1–4) identify – using the process described above – a suitable company for the practical elements. You have until the 4th semester, at the latest, to opt for the programme with extended practice.

Applications and contracts

Applying for a programme with extended practice

Kempten University Of Applied Sciences takes note of the contract between a company and dual / cooperative programme students. New compulsory requirement: Supplement citing topics to be covered during practical semester

We note the period of contract, practical stages and timing of the practical semester cited in the “Supplement detailing the practical semester of study”, which you must append to your contract. The placement officer in your faculty will check all these details before signing the supplement, after which you will be emailed a copy for your records.

What we need from you:

Contract of study, signed
Supplement detailing the practical semester of study

Requirements and application process:

A higher school leaving certificate (“Abitur”), college certificate (“Fachhochschulreife”) or master craftsperson’s certificate (or equivalent advanced training certificate) qualifies you for admission to a university of applied sciences. It is also possible for specially formally trained workers to enrol on programmes related to their field.
A good year before you’re due to leave school or college is the right time to start thinking about potentially suitable dual / cooperative degree programmes. Its important to get a head start. You can browse the various options for dual / cooperative degree programmes, including a list of all our partner companies, in our “Programme finder”.
Around 8–10 months before programmes start (October), you should apply to the company of your choice for a place to study a degree with extended practice. It’s also possible to apply to companies who don’t yet collaborate with us (simply enquire about potentially establishing a partnership with Kempten University of Applied Sciences, put the company in touch with us, and we’ll do the rest).
Once you have secured a contract of study at the company, apply to enrol with the university. Please note the application periods at our university (as a rule: 15 April to 15 July for the coming winter semester). Please then arrange for your contract with the company to be sent to us. We don’t require any original documents from you – a scanned copy of your contract of study and the supplement detailing the practical semester suffice.
Done all that? In that case, we are delighted to welcome you as a student at Kempten University of Applied Sciences!
From now on, you will alternate between academic and practical stages. Your spend your practical semester, lecture-free periods, and the time working on your final thesis entirely in the company with which you have a contract.
This degree programme format concludes with a practically focused bachelor’s thesis produced in the company and the ensuing award of the relevant bachelor’s or master’s degree.
Please bear in mind!
Some of our degree programmes have specific admission criteria, usually in the form of a “numerus clausus” (cut-off entry grade). The grades required for such dual / combined degree programmes are the same as those for the equivalent regular programme. The same applies to dual / cooperative programme students! Your company will generally know if cut-off grades apply, and will bear this in mind during the selection process.

Additional special feature for programmes with extended practice:
It is possible to start studying first and then organise a study arrangement with the company at some point during semesters 1 to 3. The feasibility of this option depends entirely on the company.

What if the company that you wish to work for isn’t yet partnered with Kempten University of Applied Sciences?
You are very welcome to use your own initiative to find a company and enquire about the potential for studying on a dual / cooperative degree programme (combined format or extended practice).

Practice-based partners on programmes with extended practice: Bachelor’s degrees

Click here the list of all the partner companies for your programme format.