Practical Experience/Internship

Gaining practical experience during your studies is essential for a successful career start after graduation. There are various forms of practical experience, which may be more or less suitable depending on the phase of study.

Ask yourself what you want to "experience" in practice. Do you want to deepen certain topics and specialize? Or do you first need career orientation and get to know industries? Are you interested in networking with potential employers?

This is also related to the timing of the respective format: a career-oriented internship is more likely to take place at the beginning of a your studies, while specialization and networking are more useful to take place at an advanced stage. Plan in good time for organizing your practical experience and contacting companies.

 

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Fishing for Experience - a practical programme

Fishing for Experience is a TUHH practical program that brings together students and attractive companies of Hamburg metropolitan region. In international and interdisciplinary teams, TUHH students work on entrepreneurial tasks and apply specialist knowledge from their studies in practice. Together with the companies, they develop innovative solutions for future issues and strengthen their key competencies, which they can use in their professional lives.
Duration: every semester for about 5-6 months, parallel to studies.

TUHH-PraxisPlus - online internship fair

Since 2010, the TUHH internship fair PraxisPlus has given students at the Hamburg University of Technology (TUHH) the chance to take advantage of exclusive specialized internships. Even before the online internship fair, internship and working student positions are published by numerous participating companies. At the fair itself, students can make contact with companies and have their first one-on-one meetings.

 

Internship or practical semester

An internship is usually completed before or during studies and is a very good way to gain practical experience. In terms of content, it should ideally be completed in the industry in which you also see yourself after graduation. Internships not only increase the chance of a successful career start later on, but also serve as an orientation guide for the direction to be taken after graduation. Therefore, a longer specialized internship makes sense especially from a higher semester (e.g. from the 5th semester) and usually lasts between three and six months. For a six-month internship semester, a leave of absence must be applied for.

Internship positions can be found in all known job exchanges and in special internship exchanges, too (see also "Tips for your job and internship search" below).

Alternatives to an internship

Working student job

A working student job also offers a profitable practical experience, which should have a direct relation to the study contents. Since it is completed over a longer period of time, technical skills are already assumed and these are further developed in the course of the activity in an engineering work environment, the working student activity is welcomed by future employers. It is also a great opportunity to expand your network.

Time frame:

Working student jobs are usually aimed at advanced students from higher semesters. This is because specific engineering skills are already required here. The work is performed over a longer period of time in addition to the regular study routine. Working student jobs are paid.

 

Final thesis in a company

With the final thesis in a company, further practical experience can be gained and a concrete problem can be solved. Another advantage could be that the activity can be remunerated and the course can be set for the subsequent career entry. However, the decisive factor for a Master's thesis in a company is that the supervision of the thesis by the TUHH can be guaranteed on the basis of the corresponding examination regulations. This must be carefully checked in advance with the supervisor, especially with regard to the topic and content of your thesis.

Time frame:

The thesis is usually written in the last semester of university. However, some companies require that you have completed an internship in the company beforehand. This may therefore have to be taken into account in your time planning.

 

Working as a freelancer (independent contractor)

There are many companies that employ students primarily as freelancers.  It offers many advantages, e.g. flexible working hours, usually higher pay than student part-time jobs and the further expansion of your own professional network. Legally, there are some things to consider: for example, inform yourself well in advance whether you need to register a business for the activity.

ECIU Challenges

ECIU challenges are projects characterized by placing a real, relevant life challenge at the center of students' learning. They work in teams with different cultures and in an international environment, practicing analytical and critical thinking and improving their problem-solving skills. 

As a TU-student, you can have all challenges credited with ECTS-points depending on their scope.

More information at: https://eciu.tuhh.de/challenges/

Scholarships

Deutschlandstipendium

The TUHH has been awarding the Deutschlandstipendium for several semesters.

Sartorius Scholarship

The Sartorius Scholarship is aimed at prospective master's students, particularly from the natural sciences, engineering, economics with a focus on marketing/sales, and business informatics, who have completed their first degree and wish to pursue their master's degree. For these students, Sartorius offers scholarships in the areas of Research & Development, Sales, Marketing & Product Management, and Information Technologies.


ICU Stipendium

The ICU Scholarship offers comprehensive and excellent leadership development with more than 200 internships and gap year projects worldwide with multinational corporations, strategy consultancies, hidden champions, venture capital/private equity funds, start-ups and NGOs (e.g. Amazon, BASF, Bertelsmann, Daimler, Lufthansa Cargo Human Care, etc.), a personal mentor at top management level, executive coaching, financial support as well as sustainable visibility with top decision makers.

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Internship abroad

The International Office advises you on financing an internship abroad and regularly organizes information events on this topic.

Here you will find further links to various internship and trainee programs as well as to career entry at home and abroad:

Job portals and tips for your job search

 

You can usually find internships, student jobs, part-time jobs or freelance jobs via almost all major job and job boards, such as the stellenwerk job board. In addition, there are also special internship exchanges such as:

Further tips and links under "Application & Job Search".

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