Industrial Engineering is one of those careers that people have heard about, but do not know what they do. Their roles is looking at a process and improving it (in a nutshell). To be able to do this you need to know about everything, at least on a superficial level. And to achieve this one has to learn about a variety of topics, all of which are included in the study program of IE&M at the HZ university of Applied Sciences.
As the title says it, it is Industrial Engineering AND Management. This means that the course offers a variety of courses for both engineering and management. There are classes that are more technical while others are business related. These classes balance each other out and give you a bit of an overview of everything, like a true industrial engineer. The best part is that the IE&M department regularly overviews the study program and improves the areas that need it.
What makes this study program so unique is how it offers six internships in the four years that it takes to graduate. The first two years the IE&M students have classes on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, while Tuesday and Thursday is reserved for company days. From the first day, each student gets assigned to a group and a company. These will be the same for the first semester, but then changed the next one, same goes for second year. Third year there’s an opportunity to have a minor (which you can do in the Netherlands or abroad) and a full time 6-month internship. The final year is like the third, but it starts with everyone coming back for a project and then spreading out for the graduation internship. In my first year I thought, this sounds like a rollercoaster, and it has been, but one gains so much experience.
Image source: Jezael Melgoza