Hochschule Furtwangen University

Hochschule Furtwangen University

Furtwangen, Germany

UNB and HFU have partnered over 10 years.

HFU is offering certain programmes in English (Business, Biomedical Engineering and has setup international semesters at both campus with course offerings in English for exchange students (Computer Science, Business Information Systems, Digital Media, Business Administration and Engineering,
Health, Science, Society, Mechanical and Medical Engineering)

Students interested in an internship or coop work term should contact the Engineering and Science coop office . Coop work terms are paid (a minimum of approx. 650 euros/month) and are available for eligible students in science, kin science, business, engineering and computer science. No prior knowledge of German is required.
Website URL: http://en.hs-furtwangen.de/welcome/international/coming-to-hfu/study/exchange-and-guest-student-programmes.html
Accommodations: http://en.hs-furtwangen.de/student-life/daily-life.html
Cost: Medium http://en.hs-furtwangen.de/welcome/international/coming-to-hfu/study/exchange-and-guest-student-programmes/costs-financing.html
External Funding Available: Yes
Availability: 5
Academic Dates:

http://en.hs-furtwangen.de/students/important-dates/deadlines-important-dates.html

Semester 1: early-October to mid-February
Semester 2: mid-march to late July
Course Timetable:

Programs in English

Lectures in English

International semester
Program Type: Exchange , Summer school , Internship
Language: English , German
Available Subjects: business and entrepreneurship , chemistry , computer science , health sciences , kinesiology and sports sciences , physics , engineering - chemical , engineering - civil , engineering - computer , engineering - mechanical
Travel Information: http://travel.gc.ca/destinations/germany
Practical Information: Fact sheet
Visa Requirements: http://www.kanada.diplo.de/Vertretung/kanada/en/02/visa/__long-stay.html
Additional Information:

External funding may be available:

 

Testimonial

Kirsten Melnyck, Chemical Engineering 8-month co-op @ Gambro Dyalisatoren GMBH, Summer and Fall 2013

"Working in a country where English isn’t the main language was difficult at first and pushed me outside of my comfort zone, but now I can understand full conversations and sometimes respond in German. I would never have thought that I would learn so much German in such a short period of time! The opportunities and places you get to experience as an international coop student are endless and they are experiences that you will never forget."

Testimonial

Michael Doucet, BSE/ChE 2015, 8-month co-op @ Endress + Hauser Conducta in Summer and Fall 2013 in Gerlingen, Germany. This company deals with process automation in many different fields all over the world, although many of the devices Michael has worked with deal with waste water.

 "For the first half (May until the beginning of September), I was in the marketing service department. This department takes complaints from customers and tries to solve them either with previous knowledge about the device, performing a test in the lab, or sometimes even going on site. In the service department my time was split between being at one of 3 waste water treatment plants, in the lab, or at my desk analyzing and reporting results. In this part of my placement I was happy that I had the opportunity to actually use and reinforce some of the subjects which I learnt at UNB. For example when analyzing the data I used numerical methods, and when working with the electrodes I learnt so much about electrochemistry that I didn’t know prior to this placement.

For the second half of my stay (from the beginning of September until December) I was working in the research and development department. Most of my work was be with samplers and analyzers. Either testing the software to make sure that it can do everything that it is supposed to do, or testing different components of the devices, such as pumps and coolers.

When deciding to come here I knew absolutely no German at all, which I figured may have been a problem. Although all of the people I worked with directly actually speak really good English, and since my second week working here Endress + Hauser has been getting someone to come in twice a week to give me and another colleague some German lessons. I am not fluent by any means, but I can get by at the market or at a restaurant without sounding like too much of a fool.

On the weekends, the other interns and I would take off to many different destinations in Germany, and the surrounding countries. The transit systems here are so easy to use and quite cheap if you book in advanced. Often we will bank up some hours and lengthen the weekend by a day or two making a nice long weekend to use to go and travel. By the end of this 8 month stay I have visited about a dozen European countries, but I am certain I will be back again.

I would recommend this experience for anyone. You learn so much on and off the job, meet many new people, and see many interesting places."

Testimonial

Isaac Barkhouse, Electrical Engineering, on coop in Fall 2015 “I was expecting the German working environment to be very rigid, and people working extremely hard constantly. I found this to be exactly the opposite. A Full-hour lunch break and many coffee breaks are enjoyed by almost every employee, the difference being that when the people are not on break they are working very hard, which leads to the Germans incredible productivity.”

Testimonial

Julie Sirois, Biology, on coop in Summer 2015.

 “Learning and living abroad was an opportunity of a lifetime and has given me valuable job skills that I would not have been able to develop otherwise. I have a much deeper global understanding, I am able to adapt to new situations quickly and my independence has grown significantly. The lab position I received at the university was also an absolute incredible experience. I had an amazing supervisor who taught me new techniques and skills that will hopefully aid me in my future studies.”