Mannheim Master in Data Science

Learning Agreements are your insurance that the courses you choose to attend at your higher education institution abroad will be recognized by your home university upon return.

Generally, there are two ways of recognizing coursework and examinations you complete abroad:

•  direct recognition as an equivalent course
•  indirect recognition as an ”Additional Course“

Direct recognition

For a course to be directly recognized, it has to be considered equivalent to a course from the module catalog of your program in terms of the skills you acquire in that course. If you can identify a course at your host university that is largely identical (>70% conformance) to a course you can or must complete here based on the course description, you can include it in your Learning Agreement for direct recognition. The course you complete abroad will then substitute the course taught in Mannheim. To discuss whether a particular course can be directly recognized, please contact the chairs offering the course here in Mannheim.

Indirect recognition

If the Mannheim module catalog contains no direct equivalent to the course you wish to complete at your host university, but the module contents fit one of the areas ”Data Management“, ”Data Analyses“ or ”Projects and Seminars“, it may be recognized indirectly as "Additional Course Data Management“, ”Additional Course Data Analyses“ or ”Additional Course Projects and Seminars“. Bear in mind, however, that the sum of credits awarded for these courses must not exceed 18 ECTS credits in total.

To discuss whether indirect recognition is possible for a particular course, please contact the chair whose area of research and teaching is closest to the course you would like to complete. If you are unsure, please turn to the MMDS program managers.

Conversion of Credits from abroad to ECTS credits in cases of indirect recognition

The examination committee determines how many ECTS credits you will receive for a MMDS Additional Course. The number of ECTS credits awarded is calculated by converting the credits of the host university. As a result of this conversion, you might obtain 5 ECTS credits or 7,5 ECTS credits and not the 6 ECTS credits that you get for most courses at the University of Mannheim. Keep in mind that we can only recognize a total of 18 ECTS credits for Additional Courses in the master’s programs. Higher education institutions in European countries usually also use ECTS credits or credit systems that are equivalent to ECTS.  

Should I choose courses for direct recognition or courses for indirect recognition?

As the number of courses subject to direct recognition is generally unlimited, unlike Additional Courses, you should choose such courses wherever possible. Courses that are directly recognized also bear the advantage that the credits obtained in these courses do not have to be converted.

Once you have been accepted by a partner university (in the case of free movers, the acceptance letter  will come directly from the university abroad), you should start filling out your Learning Agreement. We strongly advise you to conclude the agreement before you go abroad. That way, you are on the safe side and already know beforehand which courses will be recognized for your studies at home.

The Learning Agreement consists of two forms:

• Fill out the cover sheet once.
• Fill out one Learning Agreement form for each of the modules you intend to study abroad.

For the recognition of your courses and credits, you need to follow two steps: 

1. After it has been decided which higher education institution you will be going to, but before departing, you issue one Learning Agreement form for each module you intend to study abroad to the chair responsible in order to have the module approved. The contact persons for courses offered at the School of Humanities, the School of Social Sciences, in usiness Mathematics in Business and Economics, at the Business School, and at the Department of Economics are: 

   • all indirect Learning Agreements: Prüfungs­ausschuss WIM
   • School of Humanities: Sebastian Hempen
   • School of Social Sciences: Dr. Gledis Londo
   • Mathematics in Business and Economics:  PD Dr. Thomas Reichelt
   • Business Administration: Learning Agreements Business Administration
   • Economics: Dr. Christiane Cischinsky

2. After your return from abroad, please hand in the following four documents to the examination committee responsible for you at the School of Business Informatics and Mathematics:  

   • request form for recognition of coursework and examinations
   • Transcript of Records from the partner university: Ask your host university here to send the transcript directly to transcriptsmail-uni-mannheim.de
   • Learning Agreement(s), signed by the chairs at the University of Mannheim, as well as the cover sheet
   • confirmation by the International Office that you handed in your report

Your documents will then be checked and your grades converted. Grades obtained abroad will be recognized by the University of Mannheim on the basis of these conversion tables. After your documents have been checked, we will return the originals to you and transmit a copy to Student Services.

Please submit your application in digital form via your university email address. Therefore please send your complete documents to pruefungsausschuss.wimmail-uni-mannheim.de. To verify your transcript, please ask your host university to send your transcript directly to the University of Mannheim (transcriptsmail-uni-mannheim.de).

The module catalog 2023/2024 (and Appendix) gives an overview of the course and contents of the program.

Please read the examination regulations of your program carefully.

Chairman

Student representative: Alexander Haberling

You can contact the examination committee via pruefungsausschuss.wimmail-uni-mannheim.de           

Tasks of the central examination committee

We are responsible for the following topics:

• Advice on examination regulations
• Advice on module changes
• Advice in individual cases (such as extension of deadlines)
• Approval of reasons for withdrawal or delay
• Extension of examination deadlines
• Serious cases of cheating and breaches of regulations
• Determination of definitive failure with no option to re-sit
• Identification of missed deadlines
• Invalidity of examinations
• Appeal procedure
• Recognition of coursework and examinations
• Semester recognition certificates for BAföG, form 5 according to § 48 BAföG (also for LAG WPO)

Finding a supervisor and a topic for your master’s thesis requires early planning and initiative on your part. It is primarily your responsibility as a student to contact a chair that fits your study profile. This means that you need to contact several chairs or professors on your own initiative in order to find someone who will agree to supervise your master's thesis. It is the norm that students contact the chairs personally, and something we expect from students at our school. 

Who can supervise my master's thesis?

In general, all professors teaching courses in the MMDS program also supervise master’s theses. However, professors from other schools and departments may also do so, provided the topic falls within the scope of the MMDS program.

Industry Partner Network

MMDS students often write their master’s thesis in cooperation with a company from the MMDS Industry Partner Network.

Further Information.