Project-oriented Course in a Company or Organisation - Students

You can choose a project-oriented course in the 5th semester of your bachelor’s programme and in the 3rd semester of your master’s programme. In the 5th semester, the course must correspond to 7 weeks of full-time work including work tasks in an organisation, report writing and examination. The course in the 5th semester of the bachelor’s programme may be organised with, for example, 2 days a week in the company and the rest of the week focusing on study activities. You plan this with the company. The course replaces 10 ECTS credits. In the 3rd semester of the master’s programme, the project-oriented course must at least cover 13 weeks of full-time work including work tasks in the organisation, report writing and examination. The course replaces 30 ECTS credits.

Whether in your 5th semester of your bachelor’s programme or your 3rd semester of your master’s programme, a project-oriented course will give you:

• Contacts and network
• Supplement to your CV with real-life work tasks
• Documented practical work experience
• Knowledge of and insight into how to achieve personal best practices
• Insight into the different dimensions of the working life (relations to professional colleagues, the diversity in work tasks and routines, participation in the organisational culture of the workplace)

In relation to your programme, you will discover:

• Which part of your programme you prefer to work with.
• Which parts you would rather not work with.

A project-oriented course could be the answer to many of your questions. When combining your academic skills and competencies with the work reality, you become aware of how you can contribute professionally to the business world and the labour market.

A project-oriented course provides major practical advantages when you later enter the labour market.

At the beginning of February, your project-oriented course coordinator will inform you about the course. Here, we will go through:

• Specific academic points of attention
• Deadlines for the coming semesters
• Specific points in the curriculum and how to best follow them.

By the beginning of May at the latest, it is your responsibility to apply for a project-oriented course in an organisation or company. Keep in mind that this search process often requires multiple applications. Find help and inspiration:

• In the forum for project-oriented courses on Moodle
• In AAU Jobbank
• At AAU Career’s career fairs
• Via contact with the coordinator for your project-oriented course
• Through social media - LinkedIn - make sure your profile is up to date and appears professional
• Network - family and friends.

Once the agreement on your project-oriented course has been negotiated, the agreement document must be filled in and sent to your coordinator. The coordinator must approve the course. Only when the coordinator has approved the agreement, it is valid!

At the end of August, your project-oriented course begins. During the course, you must solve the tasks stated in your agreement.

It is important that you ensure that you become part of the organisation you are affiliated with. Through affiliation with the organisation or company, you gain insight into how your professional skills can come into play and contribute positively in practice.

It is recommended that you save your observations and reflections on your work and contributions during the project-oriented course in a portfolio. Your portfolio will prove significant when you are to write the report on your project-oriented course, because it accurately documents what tasks you have solved and what you have worked on.

The first month of your project-oriented course may be difficult. This is perfectly normal, because there are many new things to deal with: New types of work tasks, new colleagues, new routines and different habits that are probably not reminiscent of the academic habits. The whole idea of the project-oriented course is that you get the opportunity to put into practice what academia has already taught you. This means that you will learn how to write press releases, be a developer in a design process, test, analyse and develop user interfaces in practice, etc.

In December, you are to submit a report that documents and reflects on the project-oriented course. The examination varies, depending on whether you are in a project-oriented course in your 5th semester (bachelor’s programme) or 3rd semester (master’s programme). Make sure to pay attention to specific exam information at the early orientation meeting and via notices from the programme secretariat.

For your project-oriented course, you must use the agreement template that applies to your current semester and degree programme. You must fill in the agreement together with the contact person in the organisation that you want to be affiliated with in connection with your project-oriented course. All formalities must be complied with. This means that you, together with the contact person, must be very careful in describing the tasks you are to solve in connection with the course. It is a good idea to include the specific curriculum text in this part of the process.

Download template for Agreement of Project-Oriented Courses

COMMUNICATION

This means that students on a communication degree programme must solve communication-related tasks. During the course, you will gain knowledge about ‘… how communication science methods and theories meet practice, with special focus on cultural, organisational and/or media issues.’ Go to the curriculum for the master's programme in Communication (in Danish).

INTERACTIVE DIGITAL MEDIA AND EXPERIENCE DESIGN

Students in the Interactive Digital Media and Experience Design programme must be involved in preparing ‘… one or more concepts/products or a sub-element of one or more concepts/products that involve digital elements.’ Here, ‘digital elements' are a key focus point. Go to the curriculum for the master's programme in Interactive Digital Media (in Danish).

INFORMATION SCIENCE/INFORMATION STUDIES

During their project-oriented course, students in the Information Science programme must participate in solving information-related tasks. The tasks must be stated in the agreement. Information-related tasks include: User analyses; pilot studies; study of work and practice processes; design and development of ICT systems, including work with prototypes and user involvement in the development and design process; implementation and evaluation of ICT systems, including support for learning and competence development processes in connection with commissioning of ICT systems.

Students in Aalborg: Go to the curriculum for the master's programme in Information Studies (in Danish).

Students in Copenhagen: Go to Curriculum for the master's programme in Information Technology (Information Studies).

IN GENERAL: AGREE ON A TASK

It is a good idea to agree on a work task that will be your own individual task; a task that the organisation may/may not be able to directly benefit from, but one you can solve and on which you can receive feedback. This specific task will be important in connection with the report you will be writing at the end of the course. 

Yes, but it is only the report that has not been passed and must be rewritten; it is not the project-oriented course.

Yes! You have the opportunity to work on your own idea for a startup through SEA. However, you must ensure that you document both practice-related task solving and academic learning goals. Go to SEA Startup i Praksis.

Then you need to contact the International Office. And it is important to be out well in advance since you will have to apply for a visa, etc. Advertisements for courses abroad can be found in AAU Jobbank.

No! The project-oriented course is part of your degree programme, and you will therefore receive SU during the course. Thus, you are not employed, but rather a student in a project-oriented course.

You can agree with the host that they cover your travel expenses or rent (if you pay double rent) in connection with the project-oriented course, but it is an agreement between you and the host (and the Danish Tax Administration) and has nothing to do with AAU. Remember to check if the amounts are taxable.

However, you may receive a gratuity of up to DKK 3,000 before tax per month from your host. This gratuity must not resemble a fixed, pre-agreed wage income. It is a matter between you, the Danish Tax Administration and the host. Read more in Danish in the Regulation on Amendment to the Regulation on Bachelor's and Master's Programmes at Universities (‘Bekendtgørelse om ændring af bekendtgørelse om bachelor- og kandidatuddannelser ved universiteterne’).