Englisch - Fakultät für Wirtschaftswissenschaften - Universität ...

Campus Consult e.V.
Campus Consult – just another way to
get some experience?
The switch from the old German degree
programs to the Bachelor/Master system
brought some profound changes
for students. Degree programs are now
shorter, easier to plan, and more comparable
internationally. Yet studying
has also become more exhausting.
These days students have little time to
spend on activities that are unrelated
to their actual programs. Their schedules
are fuller and there are more
mandatory lectures, seminars and tutorials
to fit in so they can finish their
degrees in time. That said, almost all
job adverts require candidates to have
work experience and to have spent
some time abroad.
So how can students on a demanding
degree program possibly fulfil employers’
expectations? Most of them know
of two options: an internship, for which
they generally have to take a semesterlong
sabbatical, or a student traineeship
alongside their actual program,
places for which are few and far between.
However, there is a third possibility
that not enough students know about
– working for a student-managed consulting
company. Many students are
www.campus-consult.de
not aware that since 1993, the university
town of Paderborn has been home to
one of Germany’s most respected student-led
business consulting firms.
What does working for Campus Consult
actually involve?
Are the students who work there really
as snooty as many people think? “Of
course that’s not the way things should
be,” say the current and former members
of Campus Consult. Working for
this company doesn’t mean you’re better
than all the others – rather, it is an
opportunity to complete a degree program
while enhancing one’s professional
skills and abilities. Even in a university
environment entrepreneurial thinking
can be learned, since Campus Consult
members are “independent consultants”
who are essentially the managers
of their own little companies. The fact
that Paderborn has the second-largest
spin-off rate (Aachen ranks first) is clear
evidence that these skills are regarded
as immensely valuable.
So how does the system work?
All new Campus Consultants can freely
decide in what areas they would like to
work. The most important thing, however,
is that they enjoy what they do,
because their work is largely voluntary.
There’s just one prerequisite for being
a successul Campus Consultant: the
student consultants have to want to
learn fast and commit themselves
to the job at hand so that they, and
Campus Consult, can continue to
evolve and grow. Concept design, HR
management, customer liaison and
many other activities are part of the
student consultants’ daily work in the
320 m2 office which the company purchased
in 2009 in the Technology Park.
Campus Consult is hence ideal for students
willing to take on responsibility
and gather valuable experience to
benefit their later careers.
Former Campus Consultants who decided
to take the plunge in the past confirm
that they quickly learned to get
organized, plan their schedules, and
prioritize, all of which are skills that pay
off both while studying for a degree
and in one’s later career – also, they
can help to tip the scales in one’s favor
once it’s time to start applying for jobs.
Faculty of Business Administration and Economics
Student Initiatives
Campus Consult e.V.
Above: The Campus Consult board (from left): Salomé Blaß, Adrian Hanrath, Maximilian Pieper
and Benjamin Brune (Photo: Lichtbilder Fotografie/Martin Synowzik)
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