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This Just In: WU Executive Academy to Offer Part-time Bachelor and Master of Science Programs from 2023
March 03, 2023
New in Fall 2023
Starting next winter semester, students will be able to complete a part-time Bachelor’s (English Infos coming soon) and several post-graduate Master of Science programs at the WU Executive Academy. This way, WU’s business school is not only expanding its educational offer for people who have already joined the workforce. The two new degree programs will also close the gap in the post-graduate continuous education portfolio, which has been an issue on the Austrian educational landscape for many years.
Continuous-Education Bachelor’s Program Now Part of Bologna Architecture
In Austria alone, prospective students can choose from about 60 degree programs – but being spoiled for choice can also make things difficult. The most recent amendment of the Austrian Universities Act in 2021 aimed at simplifying the complex system and streamlining fields in which this seemed prudent. A particular feature of the amendment was the introduction of a continuous-education bachelor’s program, thanks to which continuous education programs now adhere to the Bologna system (bachelor’s, master’s, doctoral programs).
“It’s spectacular news for us – and, of course, for all those who will now be able to acquire a bachelor’s degree while holding a job,” the WU Executive Academy’s Dean Barbara Stöttinger says. The business school’s practice-related bachelor’s program in Practice-Oriented Business Administration (Bachelor of Science (CE)WU /BSc (CE)WU) will premiere in fall 2023. Students of the school’s master’s programs will obtain a “Master of Science (CE)WU” in the future, after having completed a workload of 90, as opposed to the current 60, ECTS credits.
Barbara Stöttinger
- Dean of WU Executive Academy
The newly introduced academic degree is internationally recognized and fully compatible with the regular system of studies. The most recent amendment has unified the country’s educational landscape in a way we consider very positive because it now accommodates the needs of people who work and thus lack the time resources to complete a regular study program. We designed our two new programs with this target group of people with professional experience in mind: with a strong practical orientation and an additional leadership focus.
Practice-Oriented Business Administration with Options
The six-semester bachelor’s program can be completed part-time and is open to graduates of certificate programs and people with professional experience who have obtained a school-leaving certificate. The new bachelor’s program is a particularly attractive option for people with work experience who want to acquire solid business administration knowledge complete with the most recent findings from business practice.
Reconciliation and Modularization
The bachelor’s program’s courses take place every other Friday afternoon and Saturday to avoid collision with work hours – “that’s a schedule that also works for people with a demanding job and care-giving duties,” Stöttinger states. The modular structure in place at the WU Executive Academy is another program perk: already now, a three-semester Certificate Program in Business Management covers fundamental knowledge in the field in a practice-oriented approach. This degree can be combined with another specific certificate program, for instance marketing & sales, to gain even more highly practical expertise and link subject-specific knowledge with management competences.
“Going forward, students will be able to seamlessly continue their studies to obtain a bachelor’s degree. The bachelor’s program’s students, in turn, will be able to complete various certificate programs, obtaining further valuable professional degrees,” the Dean explains. What is more: “Students don’t have to commit to six semesters of university studies right away. Instead, they can enter the program at different stages and complete the whole program module by module.”
Focus on Leadership Skills
Students in the bachelor’s program not only learn about economics, the latest research findings in the field, and best-practice examples, they also get to level up their management skills: “We have a strong focus on capacity development in communication, general management, decision-making and planning skills, as well as critical thinking,” Barbara Stöttinger shares. These foundations are complemented by specializations in the fields of marketing & sales, risk and insurance management, tourism & event management, and, from 2024, logistics and supply-chain management (more information in english coming soon).
The post-graduate master’s programs building on this bachelor’s degree enable participants to deepen and further specialize their expertise. The post-graduate master’s programs marked CEWU (Continuing Education) offer the following specializations:
- Master’s in “Accounting & Auditing,”
- “Leadership & General Management,”
- “Social Innovation & Management,” and
- “Sustainability, Entrepreneurship & Innovation,” a one-year program realized in cooperation with the Tomorrow University that students complete online.
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