The course is designed mainly for engineers, natural scientists and physicians and is best suited for experts and executives in the medical device, biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries as well as in the healthcare sector. The course provides basic economic core competences, industry-specific know-how and key qualifications for international business activities. The course consists of several modules with an exam at the end. The course is taught in German and English.

Applicants need to have at least two-year practical experience and a degree from a university, university of applied sciences or university of cooperative education. The students also have to pass two language tests (TOEFL and GMAT). In an interview, the IBST assesses whether the goals of those interested in the course conform to those of the IBST.

Every year, a maximum of 20 applicants can be accepted on the course so unsurprisingly, the application criteria are high. As part of the presentation on the 4th of April, Leah Schulz, Head of IBST, and Dr. Theophil Rieger, programme coordinator of the course, recommended that prospective students prepare for the interview during the summer.

Barbara Gruler, export group leader Africa at Karl Storz GmbH & Co KG in Tuttlingen does not attempt to hide her enthusiasm for the course: “I would do the course again if I could; we were a fantastic group and the atmosphere was sensational!” Jürgen Wegmann, who studied chemistry and now has a post as project leader at Aesculap AG & Co. KG in Tuttlingen, confirmed: “The course is very diverse and motivating, it is great fun to be able to use the newly acquired knowledge on the following days. Also people who are not acquainted with the subject find it easy to follow the topic.”

The comments made by the two former students are representative of many other evaluations by graduates of the challenging General Management course with a special focus on medical technology and healthcare. The higher level qualification gives graduates more security in their careers and pays off through greater job success. The students of the first five years of study assessed the results of their high level of commitment as positive, as did the course lecturers: both sides enjoy working with each other, people get to know each other better in small groups, something that is very motivating. Professor Detzer very much appreciates this. He makes it obvious that he really likes his mature students and his teaching activities.

It is no accident that this master’s course is offered by the IBST and no accident either that IBST is located in Tuttlingen, a city which calls itself the “World Medical Device Centre” and which has created the quality seal “Made in Tuttlingen”. The region is a hotspot of expert knowledge provided by physicians, engineers and scientists, of far-reaching international experience and with a considerable pool of experts. There is a huge demand for well-trained personnel in Tuttlingen and the IBST makes a significant contribution to supplying that demand.

Those interested in this course can improve their career opportunities considerably with the degree MBA International Management “Medical Devices and Healthcare Management”. Medical technology, health sciences and the entire healthcare sector and many of their cross-sector technologies already affect many areas of life. In addition, expanding and international markets offer high development and innovation potentials. This forces companies and institutions to react to the continuously increasing personnel requirements. The success of companies mainly depends on the employees and in particular on the executive management. That is why not only industry-specific knowledge but also increasingly cross-sector, interdisciplinary knowledge and internationally oriented management skills are required.

rz - 25th April 2008
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