Profile

The department of Environmental Planning/Environmental Technology is responsible for the organisation of the technically oriented courses of study at the Trier University of Applied Sciences, site Birkenfeld. Dedicated professors teach in eight accredited Bachelor's degree programmes, six accredited Master's degree programmes and three accredited dual Bachelor's degree programmes in the fields of mechanical engineering, process engineering, industrial engineering and computer science. All courses of study in the department are clearly related to environmental protection/sustainability.

Technical systems are becoming progressively more complex and increasingly require the engineer to cooperate with experts from non-technical fields as well. The prerequisite for this is a willingness to communicate and work in a team, which is promoted and further developed by interdisciplinary lectures, internships and projects throughout the course of study. Particularly during the first semester, a large part of the courses in the bachelor's programmes in the field of environmental Planning/Environmental Technology are organised on an interdisciplinary basis.

Particular emphasis is placed on practical training. The "Flying Days", the first smaller interdisciplinary project work, make it much easier for students to start their studies.
In numerous subjects, the knowledge imparted in lectures is deepened in corresponding laboratory internships. Examples include the natural sciences of chemistry, physics and microbiology, as well as acoustics, waste water technology, air pollution control and energy technology. Laboratories with state-of-the-art measuring instruments, reactors and devices on a laboratory and pilot scale are available for the internships. With the help of these facilities, students learn how to handle scientific equipment, how to critically evaluate results and the basics of scientific teamwork.

Project work is an important part of the course. In groups of two to five students, the acquired specialist knowledge is put into practice in projects - also with an interdisciplinary orientation. Interdisciplinarity also means working together with experts from other disciplines within and outside the university and developing new strategies and perspectives. These projects are often carried out in close cooperation with companies that want to directly utilise the results of the work. The higher pressure to succeed is countered by an awareness of the need to perform concrete work together with external partners. As a rule, such projects are also remunerated financially.

The Environmental Campus maintains a number of intensive relationships with foreign universities, including in France, Great Britain, Ireland and the USA.
By evaluating all courses at Umwelt-Campus Birkenfeld according to the European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System (ECTS) and by means of corresponding learning agreements, which are made before the stay abroad, services rendered during a stay abroad can be easily recognised for the study programme. The Academic International Office as well as the International Relations Officer advise on the possibilities of carrying out and financing study stays at a foreign university.
In addition, various cooperation agreements provide for the possibility of obtaining an additional degree at a foreign university. For example, there is an agreement on a double degree (Bachelor of Environmental Sciences) with the University of Lander, Sc, USA.

The international orientation is further underlined by intensive language training. Learning languages is an important part of the study concept. The focus is on English. There are also language courses for French, Spanish, Italian, Chinese and Portuguese. In modern language laboratories, teaching materials are available for self-study, rounding off the extensive range of courses.

Example: In the "Traveling University" elective, which is held once a year, students carry out projects in the field of "Material Flow Management" as "Management Training" with changing foreign cooperation partners. This includes practical relevance, internationality, soft skills such as communication competence, team skills, stress stability, etc. in real projects of the Institute for Applied Material Flow Management (IfaS).