EntrepreNerds wanted

The Software Campus supports you as a computer science Ph.D. student in enhancing your leadership skills. During this 2-year program, you will lead a project team to conduct a research project in collaboration with a company.

The goal is for you to learn management on the job, gain leadership experience, network with other researchers, and learn from experienced leaders. Learn more about the individual offerings at Software Campus.

Online info event to launch the application phase on 22.1.25

Apply for the Software Campus from 20 January to 2 March 2024! At the start of the application phase, we invite you to attend our online info event on January 22 to find out more about the program and the application process, ask questions and engage in an initial exchange with our industry partners. No registration is necessary, just drop by! More information and the access link will be published soon.

Lead your own research project and team

In order to learn and develop management and leadership skills in practice, you will lead a research project. Ideally, the content is closely related to the topic of your promotion in computer science in order to make maximum use of synergy effects. The aim is to gain new scientific insights. Practically that means: you manage the whole process of the project independently with the support of the research and industry partners. It all begins with planning the project, which also includes an application for financial resources and, of course, the coordination of your team up to the completion of the project.

Each project is funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research with up to 115,000 euros over a maximum ongoing project period of two years. The amount of funding will be decided on an individual case. The funds are earmarked; therefore, they must be used for the realization of the project. For the implementation of the IT projects, apply the restrictions of each notice of grants from the Federal Ministry of Education and Research, the DLR Project Management Agency implements the funding program on behalf of the ministry.

Click here to get an overview of the projects that have been implemented so far.

Trainings offered by our industry partners on-the-spot and online course

To successfully lead your IT research project, the industry partners support you fully during the professional training of individual competences and promote your potential. Each participant takes part, over one to two days – in four training sessions in the fields of leadership, methods, and social and personal competencies. Those trainings are offered in German and English and take place at the company’s base.

From a pool of seminars, each participant selects her or his training courses, for example the following:

 

Methods
  • Agile Management
  • Change Management
  • Design Thinking
  • Innovation Management
  • Negotiating successfully
  • Strategy development
 Social and personal competencies
  • Cultural Awareness and Decision Making
  • Diversity
  • Understanding oneself and others better
  • Self-presentation/ Self-promotion
Leadership
  • Leadership Essentials / Basics for prospective executives
  • Forming and leading high-performance teams
  • People Management

 

MOOC “Eco-Tech: Decoding IT’s Impact on a Sustainable Future”

A newly developed online course provides knowledge, experience, and inspiration about sustainability within a business and technology context, find out more here.

After participating in the program, you will receive a graduation certificate, which includes an overview of the training sessions you have taken part in.

Mentoring and Practical Insights

As a participant, you will personally be accompanied by an industry partner executive with a broad experience within the scope of mentoring. On the one hand, you will gain a direct insight into the daily working environment of IT executives with topics such as strategy development, technology, innovation and patent management, or personnel management. On the other hand, your mentor is a high-ranking contact person for questions or advice regarding your project. You can also exchange ideas with other participants in the communities of practice through peer-to-peer mentoring.

If possible, you will also be on-site with your industry partner for a short practical phase. This will allow you to explore the application aspects of your research and gain insights into the company’s processes. Furthermore, you can expand your network within the company with established and new contacts. To sum it up, this contributes to the recognition and further development of personal and professional perspectives during the practical phase.

Take your team with you!

Master students working on an active Software Campus research project for 6-24 months are invited to use the program’s offerings on a small scale:

  • Selection of Competence Trainings
  • Online Course
  • Networking and Mentoring within the Communities of Practice
  • Travel Expances for Events

© Stefanie Loos, Lukas Schulze