Food: Product and Process Design

Part-time co-op programme

This part-time co-op programme turns your workplace into a training company. The combination of relevant professional experience and practical training at FH JOANNEUM equips you to develop innovative products and optimise production processes.

Theory is generally covered during the Friday/Saturday blocks of teaching (in person and online) and in the weeks that you attend FH JOANNEUM in person. Around half of the workload is completed in the first three semesters while you are working at the company, with the remainder covered by your Master’s thesis.

Know-how transfer from the university to your place of work and vice versa commences in the second semester. This means that you study and work at the same time. This gives you the opportunity to specialise and to enhance your knowledge in practice.

This gives you the advantage of two training locations: at FH JOANNEUM, and at an industry-relevant company. You gain professional experience, earn an income, educate yourself, and can examine current business issues directly in the classroom, all while studying.

Projects

Regularly alternating between theory and practice during the programme encourages the continuous exchange of know-how and experience. As such, development projects conducted at the company are not the exception, but rather the norm.

Over the course of the programme, students will carry out a variety of projects at their place of employment which are directly related to their professional area of activity. The projects are supported and supervised by FH JOANNEUM. This cooperation enables students to apply the knowledge they have acquired in their work, and to deal with and discuss emerging issues directly in the classroom.

The Master’s thesis is also written in cooperation with the student’s employer, and focuses on real-life issues faced by the company. Where the company has no current issues which could suitably serve as the topic of a Master’s thesis, students also have the option of being involved in ongoing research projects and topics at FH JOANNEUM. This gives students the chance to examine the specific challenges facing their company, to develop practical solutions, and to benefit from FH JOANNEUM’s expertise and facilities.

Training partners

For a company to be a suitable training partner, its field of business must be related to the food industry. The head of programme will determine a company’s suitability on an individual basis.

Where it is possible for students to reconcile their working hours with attendance at FH JOANNEUM, the company’s location and student’s place of work are of secondary importance. A contract must be individually agreed between the student and the training company. However, we recommend the student is not employed for more than 75% of standard working hours.

Ideally, the issues dealt with in the projects arise from the company’s daily business, but in exceptions the content of these projects can also be specified by the programme. However, the Master’s thesis should always be written in cooperation with the student’s employer.