Cooperative Degree Programme in Trade and Retail Management B.A.

Overview

Degree	Bachelor of Arts
Start of study	Winter semester
Application period Winter semester	01 June until 15 July
Standard period of study	7 semesters
Credits	210
Accredited	Yes
Admission restricted	Yes
Admission requirements	Higher education entrance qualification advanced English language skills a training contract with a company with which Hochschule Bremen has concluded a cooperation agreement for the implementation of the degree programme. recommended: self-organisation skills and ability to work under pressure For further information, please visit the German page of the programme or contact the staff listed below.
Language of instruction	German
Faculty/institution	School of International Business
Integrated stay abroad	Optional
Study format	cooperative study mode

Should I go for a vocational training or an academic degree? No need to choose between, because the cooperative degree programme in Trade and Retail Management B.A. offers you both: a modern and broad business education while specialising in commercial management. In this way, application-oriented studies are merged with intensive practical experience in a company – you can choose from around 30 partner companies in different sectors such as wholesale, retail, fashion, etc.

In the degree programme, you will be trained to become a ‘moderately specialised all-rounder’ who, in addition to a sound, strongly application-orientated education in a particular branch of commerce will also acquire key competences. Students develop professional expertise through employment in the hosting company combined with an academic training, the ability to think analytically, conceptually and methodically, interpersonal competence as well as a sound knowledge of business English.

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Application period for the start of the summer semester 2025: 15 December '24 - 15 January '25

More information

Career prospects

Due to the close early career connection to the partner company, the prospects are excellent. The companies invest heavily in the students and are therefore interested in a longer-term commitment.

Moreover, the quality and orientation of the programme itself ensure the best possible preparation for professional life. Possible career profiles include all business management functions and relate to all company sizes and forms in diverse areas of commerce.

Today, the requirement profiles for skilled workers and management trainees are subject to constant change. For example, specialists are currently being sought especially in

key account management,
category management,
supply chain management,
customer relationship management,
marketing,
and e-commerce.

The degree programme takes these requirement profiles into account and aims to qualify students for management functions in national and international trading companies or in other industries.

Benefits of a cooperative programme

Perfect combination of theory and practical training

Phases at HSB in which you learn the theoretical foundations are complemented by practical phases in a partner company in which you get to apply your freshly gained knowledge.

Two degrees

After completing a cooperative programme, you will receive two degrees: In addition to the Bachelor's degree, you can complete one of the following vocational trainings, depending on the partner company:

management assistant in retail business
management assistant in wholesale and foreign trade management
management assistant in e-commerce

Shorter training period

Compared to an apprenticeship and a subsequent degree programme, the time required for a cooperative degree programme is significantly shorter overall.

Salary

Due to the combination of studies and professional training, you will receive a salary remuneration from the company during the entire period of study.

Programme structure

The special feature of the cooperative B.A. degree programme in Trade and Retail Management consists in the regularly alternating phases of theory and practice.

The theory phases take place at the School of International Business (Faculty of Business and Economics) at the Hochschule Bremen, while you complete the practical phases by taking in-company training components with one of HSB’s cooperation partners in industry and commerce. Depending on the partner company in question, you will have the opportunity to take the Chamber examination in your respective field (wholesale and foreign trade, retail, e-commerce, office management) after about 2 years. By the way, other occupations that require formal vocational training may also be possible.

In each of the first four semesters, students spend 12 weeks (plus 1 exam week) at the Hochschule Bremen and then the same amount of time in the company. You complete the fifth semester entirely in the company as part of your ‘intensive practical phase’. You spend at least 12 weeks of this abroad, either in a company or at a partner university.

You complete the specialisation studies in the 6th and 7th semesters together with students on the full-time Trade and Retail Management programme. The theory phases in these semesters are subsequently extended to 15 weeks (plus 2 examination weeks).

Practice orientation

It naturally follows that the practical relevance of such a cooperative programme is very high.

Orientation to practice at HSB:

Pursuant to the legislation governing higher education, only persons with at least five years of relevant professional experience can be appointed as professors at universities of applied sciences.
Many highly qualified lecturers in our faculty previously held senior positions in practice.
Practical relevance is of utmost importance in all courses and in all phases of the degree programme. Since the professional practice is so varied and the requirements so diverse, there is also a focus on overriding methodological competences and ‘soft skills’.

Practical in-company phases:

In addition to the regular practical phases, a longer intensive practical phase is integrated into the degree programme, of which at least 12 weeks are spent abroad.

HSB and partner companies:

The intensive in-company phase provides orientation for the choice of the specialisation in the last two semesters.
During this practical phase, students also settle on the theme of their Bachelor project, which prepares the Bachelor thesis.
Even during specialisation studies in the 6th and 7th semesters, the integration into company practice remains uninterrupted and intensive. This is because the Bachelor project and thesis usually deal with tasks that students gained experience of through their employment in the company, which are now approached more academically.

Cooperation partners

The Cooperative B.A. Degree Programme in Trade and Retail Management is offered by the Hochschule Bremen in cooperation with partner companies in the region. The partner companies finance the tuition fees for this degree programme. Of course, you can also apply for a cooperative training programme at companies that are not currently on the list of HSB partners. We will be happy to support you in this!

Internationality

During your studies, you will complete two ‘Business English’ modules and hone your language skills, especially in relation to commercial topics. These modules serve as preparation for the English language modules in the 3rd and 4th semesters: ‘Cross Cultural Communication’ promotes your intercultural competences, while ‘International Trade and Retail’ deals in-depth with international trade and the framework conditions.

The stay abroad of at least 12 weeks during the fifth semester takes place in a foreign branch of the partner company or in a freely chosen company abroad or at one of HSB's partner universities.

With this international experience, you then go on to the focus studies in the sixth and seventh semesters. Here, internationality (alongside digitalisation, demographic change and ethics / sustainability) is a cross-cutting theme that is taken into account in all modules.

All partner universities of HSB