It is often noted with regret in assessments of the Bavarian economy that universities do not offer as much business-related academic continuing education as they could. The shortage of skilled workers, which acts as a brake on economic development, cannot be dealt with by means of first degree courses alone. What are required are qualifications which go beyond this, are of academic value and are of practical relevance. bbw/f-bb is therefore offering, from 2006, in cooperation with the chair of pedagogy (Prof. Göhlich) at the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, a master’s course dealing with “Organisational Development and Human Resources”.
The master’s course is planned in terms of content and organisation by both partners, the chair of pedagogy and f-bb, and allows study alongside work. Each partner has distinct and separate responsibilities. This new and innovative form of cooperation, which is a first for the university, is essential if the real needs relating to issues of organisational development and human resources are to be met.
The occupational master’s course is aimed at company HR staff who have at least one year of experience and who want to attain deeper, systematic knowledge with a practical orientation. The target groups include personnel officers in large companies and those from SMEs, as well as from non-profit organisations, who are responsible for issues of occupational continuing education, personnel development and organisational development.
The various areas which fall under modern HR work are discussed against the background of the fact that HR work must continuously justify the contribution that it makes to the strengthening of a company’s competitive position, and thus to its overall success. Thus, the course considers, amongst other issues, the efficacy and efficiency of HR work. In addition, students should develop an eye for learning processes in organisations. The course aims not only at developing skills in terms of targeted support for learning processes at the individual, team and organisational levels, but also aims to improve students’ abilities to analyse and reflect. Scientific methods are used in practical projects with tutors from the university and business to analyse problems and develop solutions.
