Study@Heilbronn Online Info Days – Innovative Formats for Prospective Students

With the pandemic halting on-campus visits and making it impossible for prospective students to get a personal impression of the TUM Campus Heilbronn, Wissensstadt Heilbronn decided to launch the “Online Info Days Study@Heilbronn”, a cross-campus format for various educational institutions in Heilbronn. Overall, TUM School of Management held more than 30 live sessions for prospective students offered collaboratively by our professors, program managers, and students at TUM Campus Heilbronn.

Three Days Full of Exciting, Innovative Formats

Spread over three days, numerous live discussions with other schools in Heilbronn were hosted by YouTuber Jacob Beautemps in the so-called LIVe Lounge, named after and shot in the ‘LIV’ library on the Heilbronn campus. Prof. Dr. Helmut Krcmar, Founding Dean of TUM Campus Heilbronn, introduced the TUM Campus Heilbronn in the Opening Session on Tuesday. He talked about the role the location Heilbronn plays for TUM: “Two years ago, we celebrated our 150th anniversary as TUM and of course, Heilbronn is a very exciting chapter for the Technical University of Munich, going from over 40,000 students in Munich back to functioning similar to a start-up here in Heilbronn”. He went on to explain what makes Heilbronn and the region so attractive for our students and addressed the recent challenges that came with the shift towards digital teaching. Prof. Dr. Müller then went into the session “Get Your Master” to discuss the arguments in favor of a Master’s at the TUM Campus Heilbronn and answered questions such as: “Do I need a master’s degree at all?”, “What chances will it provide for me?”, and “Why should I get my master’s degree in Germany, especially in the Heilbronn-Franken region?”.

On Day two, Prof. David Wuttke, together with three of his Master students, discussed the potential for VR in education and classes: “Especially in education, I see multiple things for which VR could present great potential. Looking at it from a professor’s perspective, a more didactic perspective. When you are teaching, you are typically holding a 90-minute-lecture, heavily based on the theory that you need to convey and the lecture is rather teacher-centric. Here at TUM Campus Heilbronn, we are in a fortunate situation. We have smaller class sizes, which makes our seminars and lectures much more interactive already. And now, with VR, we are taking the next step, creating lectures that are participant centric.”

Finally, Prof. Dr. Helmut Krcmar rounded off the LIVe Lounge program on Thursday with the topic “Digital Transformation with COVID19“. In his sample lecture, Prof. Krcmar talked about the drivers of the digital transformation and its acceleration due to COVID19. Based on a recent study, he addressed the organizational changes that came with the crisis and the necessity to adapt management activities accordingly. “Your studies here in Heilbronn will enable you to acquire the dynamic capabilities and meta-skills needed to manage such changes in the context of digital transformation,” he said as he wrapped up his lecture.

In addition to the various formats in the LIVe Lounge, our professors offered numerous sample lectures for prospective students to get a first glimpse into what they can expect during their studies at TUM Campus Heilbronn. Dr. Rehbock, held a presentation on 360° Leadership to answer questions such as: “What is leadership to you?” and “How do you influence others without a formal leader role?”, while Prof. Jung gave a talk on law and contract negotiations. Day two started with an interactive supply chain simulation session with Prof. Wuttke, who then later held a second, blended-learning lecture on the Newsvendor Model. Prof. Förderer and Prof. Müller rounded off the program. Prof. Förderer introduced the topic: “Uber, Air BnB & Co. – How Digital Platforms are Revolutionizing Business” – based on the concept of digital platforms and their impact on our economy and shared best practices on how to manage them. Prof. Müller offered a sample lecture on sustainable finance, discussing sustainability from an investor perspective.

The program was complemented by numerous info sessions, consultations with our program managers, as well as Q&A sessions with our professors, students, and alumni. After successfully piloting the Study@Heilbronn Online Info Days, all those involved are certain: Corona or not, in the course of digitization, virtual events like the Online Info Days offer valuable experience to approach similar, forward-looking formats in the future.

Re-watch all the LIVe Lounge sessions on YouTube.

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