During the third week of Advent, six teams of students from three partner universities met with their tutors at the Hochschule Zittau/Görlitz to defend their work to a jury of experts. The team presentations marked the end of the third year of the International Project Workshop (IPW), which gives students an insight into the environment of large companies and allows them to put the knowledge they have gained from the lectures into practice. 

For the second time, students from the IPW 2004 met in person with their colleagues from the partner universities École La Mache Lyon from France and Hochschule Zittau/Görlitz from Germany during the final project week. As usual, the final week of IPW was marked by intensive work on preparing team presentations. However, this year’s event was also spiced up with the festive atmosphere of Advent. The coordinators from Görlitz took great care in the program for the IPW participants, so the students had the opportunity to relax at least a little at Monday’s intercultural evening, where everyone presented their Christmas traditions right after visiting the traditional Advent market. “We experienced a new dimension of international cooperation. Projects from six ‘big player companies’, very good results, and a great atmosphere among the students from nine nations who became friends – what more could you wish for?  I am very grateful to the initiators and partners from MIAS CTU Prague and Ecole La Mache Lyon.” Said Prof. Dr. Falk Maiwald, dean of the Faculty of Managerial and Cultural Studies and one of the main coordinators of the project.

On Tuesday, the students had the opportunity to visit Siemens Energy, one of the six partner companies involved in the project. The company also provided a space for the students to work on the details of their final presentations. In addition to Siemens Energy, the companies involved in the project were Total Energies, Cofidis, Komerční Banka, Renault Trucks, and Škoda Group. Representatives from the companies were part of the expert juries that evaluated on Wednesday and Thursday how the students performed in their project tasks, which the companies set in September before the start of the project. Before the presentations, all teams had submitted final reports detailing the results of the work they had been conducting for seven weeks.

The project ended on Friday morning when everyone came together for the last time to evaluate what they had learned from their participation in the project and what challenges they had faced during their work. “I absolutely loved the IPW project; it was a wonderful experience where I made many new friends and had much fun. The collaboration and learning opportunities were truly unforgettable,” says Sven Herrmann, a student from a German university. “A great project with very diverse and interesting challenges for everyone. Plus, a great opportunity to meet new international people.” adds his teammate Martha Weber. Building international cooperation and gaining experience are among the main goals of IPW. For the coordinators, the appreciation from the students is an important motivation to work on future editions.

Vincent Montenero, initiator and creator of the project, also expressed his satisfaction: “With the third edition of the IPW, we’ve reached a kind of cruising speed. We collaborate excellently with other universities and partners. We also know how to get students to turn this experience into a concrete learning experience in international business.’

Now, all we have to do is get ready for the fourth edition in September 2025.