Last week, Prof. Johannes Becker, Head of the Institute of Public Economics, travelled to Berlin with bachelor's students to discuss current US tariffs policy, particularly under the presidency of Donald Trump, as part of the seminar ‘Crisis Policy: World Trade under Pressure’. The seminar was held in collaboration with students and lecturers from TU Dresden and took place at the State Representation of the Free State of Saxony.
The project “BEAM” (Belonging, Empowerment, Access & Mentorship), part of the Women+ in Information Systems Initiative, was awarded the 2025 Gender Equality Award at the New Year’s Reception of the University of Münster. The prize is awarded every two years by the Rectorate and recognizes projects that make an outstanding contribution to equal opportunities and gender equality.
In the current Der SPIEGEL cover story, “What Germany Earns: The Comprehensive Pay Report,” the paper “The Gender Pension Gap in Germany – Reasons and Remedies” by Prof. Dr. Christoph Schneider of the Finance Center Münster is featured. Together with Mannheim-based public finance scholar Prof. Dr. Alexandra Niessen-Ruenzi, Schneider examines how income and pension disparities between women and men evolve over the course of their lives.
Since the end of 2025, the School of Business and Economics has been presenting its new Research Highlights in the corridor of the Forum Oeconomicum library. The selected publications reflect the cutting-edge research being conducted at the department: all articles have been published in leading international journals in the highest category (A+). The exhibition highlights the current topics and social challenges being researched – from AI-supported business models and new work to energy and sustainability.
In Part 23 of the Alumni Stories, we introduce Hendrik Tigger. After completing vocational training as an industrial management assistant, he studied Business Administration at the School of Business & Economics and gained his first practical experience in tax consulting and auditing while still a student. Following the successful completion of his diploma degree, he began his professional career as an audit and tax assistant. Today, Hendrik Tigger is both a certified tax advisor and auditor and serves as managing director and shareholder of two companies: Merco GmbH StBG and Dr. Merschmeier + Partner GmbH, WPG StBG, both based in Münster. While at Merco he primarily advises small and medium-sized enterprises as well as private individuals on tax-related matters, his work at Dr. Merschmeier + Partner focuses on auditing, particularly in the social sector and among public-sector enterprises, which he also supports with tax and business advisory services.
Around 500 bachelor's students visited Cineplex Münster as part of the business administration onboarding module with Prof. Dr. Thorsten Hennig-Thurau, Chair of Marketing and Media, Dr. Annegret Saxe, CEO of Sparkasse Münsterland Ost, Prof. Dr. Jens Paschmann, Junior Professor of Marketing Analytics, and Lara Zoe Minor, student and social media manager at the Marketing Centre Münster. The event is part of the onboarding module for new bachelor's students of business administration at the University of Münster.
Just in time for the Christmas holidays and the turn of the year, our review of 2025 has been published. The year was dominated by the strategic development of the School. Among other things, we adopted a new mission statement, the key points of which can be found in the individual chapters of the annual review.
Success at the prestigious WFI Consulting Cup 2025 in Ingolstadt: An independent team of business and economics students from the University of Münster won first place in the 24-hour case competition. The topic of the case study was ‘Strategic realignment and turnaround management in the defence sector: Developing a sustainable business model through technological innovation and operational efficiency improvements in a dynamic market environment’.
Prof. Dr. Julia Backmann, Head of the Chair for Transformation of the Work at the University of Münster, explains in an interview with SPIEGEL current developments in the world of work and challenges common misconceptions: The often-cited accusation that Germans work too little cannot be substantiated with data. Many employees, particularly women, face heavy workloads due to long working hours, unpaid overtime, and additional care work. Efficiency, fair distribution of work, and structural frameworks are more decisive than the sheer number of hours worked.
