Study plan
Study plan
In the first semesters, your study plan is relatively narrow, since you will learn the basics that you need in all areas of electrical engineering (or medicine, etc.).
You can choose the sequence of your studies completely freely. However, it is advisable to stick to the recommended plan as much as possible.
In later semesters, you will deepen your knowledge in a sub-area of your subject, which gives you options and allows you to design your study plan much more freely.
The subjects (called “modules” at the university) award different numbers of “Credit Points (CP)” depending on how much time they require in the semester.
Mathematics I in the first semester, for example, gives 8 CP, which should roughly correspond to a workload of 8 * 30 hours.
Only a part of this time consists of lectures, a large part comes from exercises and independent learning.
Accordingly, the time required is only a very rough guideline, which is more or less applicable depending on the individual.
The CP also determine the weighting of a subject in your later bachelor grade.
The Bachelor has a total of 180 CP, thus Math I contributes 8/180 to your grade.
For each semester, regardless of the subject, an average of 30 CP is provided. Often, however, a slightly different value results.
Modules
In addition to the lectures, there are also exercises or laboratory practicals for some courses, which help to deepen and better understand the theoretically acquired knowledge from the lecture. These courses together form a module. For example, the module Electrical Engineering and Information Technology 1 consists of a lecture and a corresponding (group) exercise.
In general, the exercises are either organized centrally as a “pre-calculus exercise”, or there are small groups in which the exercises can be worked on.
These groups are supervised by tutors who explain (digitally or in presence) the contents and help you with questions.
All modules are summarized in the module handbook of your study program, which you can find under Downloads on the department website.
We strongly recommend that you stay on the ball with lectures and exercises during the semester and attend them regularly.
Often you can hand in exercises to your tutor:in for a correction and receive an exam bonus, which should serve as extra motivation.
Passing exams without having done the exercises is usually hardly or not at all possible. Not doing an exercise during the semester is not a big deal, but it should be done at the latest in preparation for the exam.
Most modules end with a written exam, similar to what you already know from school.
Occasionally there are also oral exams or other forms of examination such as lectures or term papers, but these are more likely to occur later in your studies.
An exam counts as passed if at least a grade of 4.0 is achieved.
Failing an exam is not a big deal, only a few students manage to complete their studies without having to take a few extra exams.
So you shouldn’t blame yourself too much if you didn’t make it.
The exams can be made up in the following semesters.
However, it is important to plan enough time in this semester to study sufficiently for the exam.
Since the exams at our university are usually spread over the entire “semester break”, as it is called at other universities, you usually have enough time to prepare accordingly.
Exams may only be repeated a maximum of two times (three attempts in total).
More about this in the chapter Exams.
Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)
General studies
No matter which course you are studying at Faculty 18, you will find the Studium Generale in all curricula. The idea behind it is to give you the opportunity to deal with topics outside your field of study. Within the Studium Generale you can choose from selected modules (as of 01.10.2020) of the departments 1, 2, 3, 15, 16, 18 as well as modules of the language center or some others. So, from accounting to theology to sign language courses, really anything is possible here.
Students in the etit program must also take a language course as part of the Studium Generale. You can find out more about language courses on the page Language courses at the TU.
You can also see the current offer of possible Studium Generale modules in TUCaN in the course catalog (VV) or under Events -> Registration -> Studium Generale.
Duration of studies
The standard duration of the Bachelor’s degree is 6 semesters (3 years). The Master, on the other hand, is only 4 semesters (2 years) long.
However, studying a bit longer in case you had to repeat or postpone exams is not an exception.
Also, working part-time or commuting far can extend the study time, as you will manage less CP per semester.
In the end, however, it’s all about holding the bachelor’s certificate in your hand at some point.
After that, by the way, you can continue directly with the master’s degree in Darmstadt.
All students who have completed their bachelor’s degree at the Department of Electrical Engineering and Information Technology can seamlessly transfer to the master’s program.
Bachelor Electrical Engineering and Information Technology
The Bachelor of Electrical Engineering provides a solid foundation in general principles of electrical engineering, especially in the first semesters.
This includes fundamentals of electronic circuits, how computers work, physics, programming skills and practical methods for measuring electrical quantities.
Of course, the bachelor’s degree also includes an education in advanced mathematics.
These may seem very abstract and “unnecessary” at first, but often one realizes in later semesters that many learned mathematical constructs are needed and can be quite helpful after all.
In higher semesters you can then choose from one of the specializations:
- Automation Engineering (AUT)
- Computational Electrodynamics (CED)
- Data Technology (DT)
- Electrical Energy Technology (EET)
- Communication Technology and Sensor Systems (KTS)
- Sensors, Actuators and Electronics (SAE)
Thus, there is a specialization for each interest, which is continued in the master’s program. From computer science and programming-heavy data technology, to complex mathematical electrodynamics, to the “tinker:in-depth” SAE and much more.
Bachelor Mechatronics
The Bachelor Mechatronics is a mixture of the study program Electrical and Information Technology and Mechanical Engineering. As with electrical engineering and information technology, it includes the basics of electronic circuits, programming skills and practical methods for measuring electronic variables. However, subjects such as “technical mechanics” and “materials science” are also included, making the course multidisciplinary.
In the end, you have the basic knowledge of two courses of study in your pocket (although you should bear in mind that the other courses of study go into much more depth, as subjects such as physics in electrical engineering and information technology and chemistry in mechanical engineering are modules that do not have to be taken in mechatronics). The motto of mechatronics is to be broad in its expertise.
In general, the program deals with the development and production of integrated mechanical-electronic systems. As with electrical engineering and information technology, advanced mathematical knowledge is also taught here, which may seem very abstract at the beginning.
As in electrical engineering and information technology, there is no specialization in the bachelor’s degree. However, it is possible to choose from an elective catalog of electrical engineering and from an elective catalog of mechanical engineering, so a personal “specialization” is still possible.
Bachelor Medizintechnik
The Bachelor of Medical Engineering is also interdisciplinary, since on the one hand medicine and on the other hand technology are the contents of this study program. Basically, medical engineering is a mixture of electrical engineering, computer science, mechanical engineering, basic mathematics and physics subjects, and of course medicine. But watch out! Contrary to the belief of many freshmen, the course is not half medicine and half engineering! The distribution is roughly more like 20% medicine, 60% technology and 20% basics and electives unrelated to the subject.
A special feature of the study of medical technology is undoubtedly the cooperation with Frankfurt, since most subjects related to medicine are taught at the University of Frankfurt. The study plan is designed in such a way that on exactly one day events take place in Frankfurt and on all other days you study in Darmstadt.
In the first four semesters you will receive a broad basic education, which consists mainly of compulsory subjects of the above-mentioned subfields.
From the fifth semester in the standard period of study, you can choose between elective subjects to adapt your studies to your interests, similar to mechatronics.