Organizing Your Study

In order to have a comfortable yet productive study period during the exchange, each exchange student is advised to take a look at our School's course offerings and prepare an according personal study plan. During the group and personal meetings prior to the semester start, we will discuss the study plan in further detail.
 
 

  • Course Selection

    There are multiple ways to look for course offerings at SBE. Information on contents, knowledge requirements as well as time and place of the respective course are to be found here:

    - Filter choices according to needs (language of instruction, study level, credit points,Term structure, etc.)
    - Get general overview about courses and need for registrations/ applications
    - Some Master Courses are not available for Bachelor students, please see the following list for more details
    - Please note: Errors may occur and only the official information by the Chair, the Online Course Catalogue and  Exam Office are binding. If you notice any unclarities, please do not hesitate to contact us.
    • Course Descriptions (course contents for credit transfer). All SBE courses, Bachelor-and Master-level, with detailed course descriptions to all programs in Business Administration, Economics and Information Systems.
    • UM Online Course Catalog (up-to-date schedules with time and place). The Online Course Catalogue - or in German "Vorlesungverzeichnis" - is the university website that lists all offered courses as well as the official and up-to-date schedules. For regular students, the online catalogue lists all necessary courses according to standard study plans. For exchange students, however, the website is primarily important for showing up-to-date schedules (times & location). In the Excel-table above, you can find the link to the information on this catalog for each course. Or can search by yourself, switch to English by clicking on the English flag at the right top of the screen and then "search for lectures" on the left menu.
    • Chairs' websites (specific information, registration for seminars)
                 Economics
                 Information Systems
                 Interdisciplinary Economics

    Locations: Check Online Course Catalogue and University of Münster Campus Map (https://www.uni-muenster.de/uv/wwuaz/lageplan/en)

    Mandatory attendance? For the majority of lectures and tutorials at SBE, there is no mandatory attendance. Please check the Online Course Catalogue for the particular course. All Seminars, however, do have the obligation to attend.

    Select Overlapping courses? Regardless of mandatory attendance or not, our experience has shown that actual attendance and the passing of a course do have a positive correlation, meaning that students attending a class have a higher probability to pass. On these grounds, it is advised to not choose overlapping courses in the study pla

    Cum tempore? If not noted otherwise, courses always start cum tempore (c.t.), which is Latin and indicates that a course will not start on the hour but 15 minutes later, and accordingly, end 15 minutes earlier. For example, if a lecture is scheduled from 14-16 o'clock, the lecture will actually start at 14:15 o'clock (15 minutes later) and end at 15:45 o'clock (15 minutes earlier). Consequently, there will always be 30 minutes between two courses. All times in the Online Course Catalogue are shown as c.t. times.
    The opposite of c.t. is s.t. (sin tempore). If s.t. is specifically indicated, the course does start exactly on the hour: For example, 15:00 s.t. means the course begins at 15:00 o'clock sharp.

    Language Courses @SBE and @WWU
    The vast majority of language courses is organized by our university's language center (see below). Additionally, SBE offers language courses.  However, those are partly held in German and therefore require a German level of B2 according to CEFR.

    Other courses at WWU
    The University of Münser (WWU) offers a wide range of subjects, from archaelogy to zoology. If you are interested in taking such courses, please contact the respective exchange coordinator of your faculty of choice. All administrative matters of registration, exams and transcripts then follows the rules of the respective faculty. This means, that after completing a WWU-cours, you will need to ask for a certificate that states your grade. The certificate needs to be sent to Martin Schmidt via e-mail.

  • Course Type: Lectures / Tutorials / Seminars

    Courses at SBE are organized as either  
         -    Lectures    (with or without Tutorials) - No prior application necessary / required / possible
               or
         -    Seminars - Required prior application >> See respective Chair's Website
     
    Lectures and Tutorials (L/T)
    The majority of courses are held in the mode of Lecture/ Tutorial. Lectures are commonly held by a professor and are aimed at laying a profound theoretical foundation. Lectures are usually accompanied by Tutorials (synonyms: exercises / practices / "Übungen").

     

    Seminar Courses

    In a seminar course, students are expected to conduct research on an academically relevant topic and hand in the results in form of a self-written paper that holds up to scientific standards. The aim is to get acquainted with academic writing and prepare for the bachelor/ master thesis. The seminar course consists of a limited number of participants as to allow interactive group works and discussions. Therefore:

    • A PRIOR APPLICATION is always required. 
      Without the specific confirmation by the Chair, students cannot take part in a seminar course.
      Each Chair organizes the application process for itself, which means that deadlines and access methods (i.e. random principle; first-come first-served (fcfs); individual application) vary among the courses. Please check the Chair's Website for further specific information.
    • Students are graded on the written paper, often in addition to a presentation, and/ or the contributions made during the seminar. Attendance is mandatory.
    • Study Plan/ Learning Agreement
      If a seminar is included in the Learning Agreement, the course can only be regarded as preliminary and might need to be changed. Due to the limited number of places available, some seminars cannot admit exchange students as the places available need to be given to students who will graduate from SBE; therefore those courses are often booked out even before the semester start. Exchange students will get all important information on offerings and deadlines before the semester begins.
     
    Group Work Involved?
    If group work is involved, fellow students in the course will need to rely on each other and share some common basic knowledge. Therefore, please double check if you have a) the necessary basic knowledge for that course, and b) enough time to participate in group work .

  • MASTER-Course Availability For BACHELOR-Level Students

    • Master-level students can choose from all Master-level and Bachelor-level courses. Note: Seminars will always require a prior application at the Chair directly.
    • Bachelor-level students can choose from all Bachelor-level courses & several Master-level courses, depending on the current study level.
                   
    If you are in your 4th year of a 4-year Bachelor program and you want to pursue certain Master-level courses that are closed:
     
    If you are at Bachelor's level but would like to pursue a specific Master-level course that is not available:
    SBE supports exchange Bachelor-level students to participate in Master-level courses if the necessary prior knowledge for participation in Master-level courses can be proven. As often group work is involved fellow students in the course will need to rely on each other and share common basic knowledge. Therefore, please double check if you have
    a) the necessary basic knowledge for that course, and
    b) enough time to participate in group work.
     
     
    Send an email to o incoming@wiwi.uni-muenster.de, including
    • a recent Transcript of Records - verified or verifiable.
    • highlight or list courses that show building-up of knowledge in that field of Accounting, Finance, Marketing, Management
    •  include max 100 words of motivational text.

    The respective Chair needs to decide if participation is reasonable.

  • Exam Registration and Schedules

    By submission of online exam registration, courses will be officially registered at the examination office:

    • mid-October for a winter semester
    • mid-April for a summer semester
    • You can take part in the final exam only if you registered for it using the online exam registration
    • Registration for the exam after the deadline is not possible
    • ALL courses taking place at SBE will require this registration (e.g. regardless of a prior registration/application).
    • Differing course registration for regular and exchange students: The reasoning for differing course registration methods between regular and exchange students: Exchange students are able to select from a unique variety of courses, including most degree courses in Business Administration, Economics, and Information Systems, however with certain constraints, too. Therefore, the official registration procedure (at our School’s examination office) differs fundamentally from the procedure that fellow regular students need to follow. Those other regular students register online via the website “Flexnow”. All exchange students, on the other hand, will be registered for all SBE courses on the basis of the online exam registration.
    • Double-check your exam registration a few days after the deadline using Flexnow-System.

      *ACCESS: Due to rising data security risks originating from foreign entities, students will only be able to access Flexnow using a "VPN connection" and a “one-time password” (OTP):

     VPN-Connection: https://www.uni-muenster.de/IT/en/services/kommunikation/vpn/index.html

    One-time password (OTP): https://www.uni-muenster.de/IT/en/services/arbeitsplatz/otp/index.html

    LOG-IN: University of Münster-ID + password (same as for Learnweb, perMail, etc.)

    Exam Schedules
    Examination schedules (time and place) will be published after the start of the semester by the examination office on its website.
    As the English version of the website, often, is not up-to-date, it is advised to use the information on the German website:

    Sometimes, the examination offices publishes the dates on its news website:

     examination office news website [GER] 

     examination office news website [ENG]

    Under the subject "Prüfungstermine", you will find 4 separate pdf-documents:

    • "Prüfungen vorgezogener Zeitraum"
      Bachelor/Master                                                             >>  Term I courses/ examinations; Seminars
    • "Prüfungen regulärer Zeitraum"         
      Bachelor/ Master                                                            >>  Regular and Term II courses / examinations

    Caution: Always check the exam schedules again before the examination takes place, as sometimes, updated documents were uploaded.

  • Course Material

    As soon as the semester begins, all courses from SBE will also have a digital course on the  LearnWeb. In those courses, the Chair will communicate with students, also about up-to-date scheduling. Therefore, make sure to enroll in all Learnweb-courses. Access to Website: University of Münster -IT-Account information (see enrollment letter from International Office)

    >> Make sure to attend the FIRST SESSION of each course in every case, as, often, course entry is protected by a specific password/enrollment key, which is usually handed out at the first course meeting.

  • Submission of Learning Agreement

    The Learning Agreement (LA) or ERASMUS+ Online Learning Agreement (OLA) are official documents within the exchange, setting up a study plan agreement between the three parties of the sending institution (= home university), the student, and the receiving institution (= SBE).
     
    Filling out the ERASMUS+ Learning Agreement (LA):
    • Use LA template from your home university: Please consult your home coordinator about your university's LA templates and requirements. The home university will provide exchange students with all necessary information about the LA.
    • Electronic LAs: If your University does not use electronic LAs anyway: Due to environmental reasons, we appreciate the LA being submitted electronically.
    • Study cycle: alway indicate your level - Bachelor OR Master. Otherwise, the LA cannot be accepted if you wish to take Master-level courses.
    • Receiving Institution:
      • Name: University of Münster
      • Faculty / Department: School of Business and Economics
      • Erasmus code: D MUNSTER01
      • Address: Schlossplatz 3, 48149 Münster
    • Component titles/ codes: Titles shall be indicated in the language of instruction (i.e. German or English); Component codes are not necessary.

    Changes

    A once-set and signed LA can only be changed once, only during the semester and the home coordinator's approval is required. Students need to use the Change form in the documents provided by the home university.

    Procedures for submission of the Learning Agreement (LA or OLA)

    Please send your Learning Agreement as a PDF-file to Incoming@wiwi.uni-muenster.de or use the online Learning Agreement.

    Before sending make sure to go through the provided information above:        
     Pay special attention to:
               >>  possible prior application requirements
               >>  access restraints to Master-level courses
               >>  prevention of timetable conflicts

    Please note/ Disclaimer: The LA is no guarantee that courses will take place.
    Moreover, for courses that require an application, each student is responsible for following the Chair's Website instructions.                                                                                                                                                                           
     

  • Certificate of Arrival/Departure

    Students can get their "Certificate of Arrival" - "Certificate of Departure" - "Certiticate of Attendance" signed upon arrival, and accordingly, the "Certificate of Departure" or "Certificate of Attendance" upon departure: admin.ess@uni-muenster.de (International office of the University of Münster)

  • Transcript of records (ToR)

    The Transcript of Records (ToR / TOR) - in German "Leistungsübersicht" - provides an up-to-date overview of students’ academic achievements.

    No Transcript of Records (ToR) will be sent to the home university automatically.

    The valid ToR can be generated by each student via the website FLEXNOW. Results will be published by the end of the semester (MAR / SEP) at the latest. The usual correction period comprises 6 weeks. On FLEXNOW, all grades from SBE courses will be published

    Eventually, students can print out a valid Transcript of Records (ToR) on their own. The ToR will be valid without a signature due to a validation link and password.

     

    • Language Courses at Language Center

    After completion, students need to ask for a certificate from the teacher (usually, not done automatically).

    Please send the scanned certificate to incoming@wiwi.uni-muenster.de the results will also be published on Flexnow.

     

    • Courses at other Departments of the University of Münster (e.g. law, psychology, sports)

    After completion of the course, students need to ask for a signed certificate, stating the ECTS-credits and grade. The course certificate templace, "Scheinvorlage [de]", can be downloaded on the website of the International Office. Then, ask the lecturer to kindly send a scanned version to incoming@wiwi.uni-muenster.de  (not done automatically) or send it to me yourself. The results will not appear on Flexnow, instead, you will receive another version of ToR by e-mail after all your SBE- and language courses' results have been published. For this ToR, please contact me and I will send you an up-to-date ToR containing all courses and gradings.