In the winter semester 2019/20, the Human Resources Management department welcomed the new intake to the consecutive Master's degree course in International Human Resources Management (IHRM). Course Director Prof. Dr. Thomas A. Martin and Managing Director Regina Hamacher welcomed the 20 enrolled students during the introductory week in September and wished them every success in the four-semester course, which leads to a Master of Science degree for the first time.
The IHRM Master's degree in Ludwigshafen began in 2007 and, with the 13th intake in 2019, is one of the oldest consecutive business administration Master's degree courses for HR management at southern German colleges and universities. There is a good balance between theory and practice. HR practitioners teach alongside HR research professors to ensure a good mix of science and application. Numerous projects, also with cooperating companies from the region, enrich the learning forms of this full-time study model.
The new students generally have a good to very good bachelor's degree in economics, which they have completed at colleges, universities and dual universities in throughout Germany. Graduates of the IPO bachelor's degree in human resources management from Ludwigshafen University of Applied Sciences again make up around 35% of the "Master's starters".
They all prevailed in a selection process against more than 87 applicants with 20 NC study places. The admission regulations were changed from the previous M.A. to the new M.Sc. compared to the previous year and require "sharper" prior knowledge in both Human Resource Management and Organization as well as Law. For more information, please see the course requirements.
The new IHRM students will first spend two semesters in the lecture hall and then start their semester abroad (university or internship semester) from late summer/autumn 2020 before returning to Ludwigshafen for a practical or research-oriented Master's thesis semester plus block seminars.
As usual, most students have already spent longer periods abroad this year. In addition, many students have already gained professional experience after their Bachelor's degree and some of them are on Master's funding programs offered by companies.
As the successful previous cohorts, who have entered the job market every year since 2009, show, the "IHRM 13-ers" can also expect good career entry opportunities for an HRM specialist or management career, especially in large, international corporations, due to the combination of theory, practice and stays abroad. Due to the regional proximity to the metropolitan areas Rhine-Main, Rhine-Neckar and Karlsruhe, many students already come into contact with potential employers during their studies in Ludwigshafen.
The recently compiled and published IHRM graduate study "AI 2019" has empirically proven the good career entry opportunities and sustainable career paths of previous graduates.
The academic degree Master of Science (M.Sc.) is usually awarded by universities and colleges in Germany for Master's degree programs in management. The Master's degree is equivalent to the former university diploma degree of "Dipl.-Kfm." or "Dipl.-Kff." according to KMK guidelines.
As a scientific degree program, the M.Sc. confers the qualification for higher public administration and access to doctoral studies according to the same admission requirements as a Master's degree from a traditional university.
The degree programs has been re-accredited without any conditions, and the on-site review took place in the summer semester.
The application deadline for the 2020/21 academic year is July 15, 2020. It is advisable for prospective students to consider the subject-specific admission requirements at an early stage in order to acquire any missing HR-specific credits parallel to their Bachelor's degree.
