Study Automotive Engineering in Germany
Studying Automotive Engineering in Germany provides enormous opportunities to enhance your career and earn lifelong professional skills. The German higher education sector ensures students gain their knowledge and skills from qualified and skilled lecturers from the automotive industry.
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Germany has an outstanding reputation for the public and private higher education sector, especially in engineering fields, which attracts thousands of international students every year.
Reasons to Study Automotive Engineering in Germany
- Germany is known for its automotive industry, which is the largest industry sector in the country. According to Germany Trade and Invest, this sector listed a turnover of €435.3 billion in 2019 (approximately 20% of the total German industry revenue).
- Germany is one of Europe’s leading production and sales markets in the automotive sector. It is actually an integral part of the global automotive industry.
- Around 40% of patent registrations in Germany are from the automotive industry, which means German universities have great potential and expertise in automotive engineering.
- An Automotive Engineering career is lucrative around the world, including in Germany. The average salary of an automotive engineer in Germany is €76,000 per year.
- Germany is home to countless companies looking to hire automotive engineers, which means the job prospects are excellent in this industry.
Structure of Automotive Engineering Courses in Germany
Automotive Engineering programs at German universities have an efficient, practical, and comprehensive structure, which usually varies depending on the university.
Bachelor Programs
A Bachelor’s program in Automotive Engineering in Germany takes approximately six semesters to complete (seven, if you count an internship semester).
Modules of B.Eng in Automotive Engineering generally include physics, statistics, mathematics, fundamentals of computer science, materials science, technical drawing, machine components, thermodynamics, CAD, kinematics and kinetics, commercial vehicles, simulation of car systems, control engineering, surface and coating technology, light framing, vehicle electronics, vehicle drive systems, chassis, automotive mechanics, etc.
Some German universities provide Bachelor’s programs in Automotive Engineering with teacher training, which is the first step towards obtaining the qualifications needed to teach this subject at vocational schools. The program includes the fundamentals of automotive engineering, educational science, and teaching methodology.
Master Programs
The Automotive Engineering Master’s programs at German universities take 3-4 semesters of full-time study to complete and are offered in German or English, depending on the university. The programs usually consist of compulsory and elective courses, including modules in electrical engineering, computer science, and basic vehicle technology modules. Core modules include automotive electronics, electric motors, vehicle mechatronics, etc.
Apart from master modules with courses, programs also contain combined research and project work. During the last semester, students are required to work on their Master’s thesis.
Job Prospects and Other Facts
Job prospects for automotive engineers in Germany are good, considering the automotive industry is one of the leading industry sectors in the country. According to a Germany Trade & Invest publication, 24% of the total domestic industry revenue is generated by the automotive industry. Automotive engineers earn an average salary of €76,000 per year, which increases with professional experience and level of education.
Graduates can find employment in industrial organizations, research, and development, or other organizations in the private or public sector.