Technische Universitaet Berlin

Sustainable Mobility Management (MBA)

Program Background

Authorities, businesses and other agencies engaged in transport and mobility must rethink their current strategies. Each urban area faces its own specific set of challenges: congestion, emissions, safety, accessibility, and economic implications are only some factors that account for the mobility situation that inhabitants experience. This implies an increased need for broadly educated, skilled managers, capable to frame those issues with social shifts, new technologies, and innovative business models.

TU Berlin’s MBA program in Sustainable Mobility Management closes the educational gap in this field and prepares students for leadership positions by training people who can deliver cutting-edge and sustainable mobility solutions. The master program has been developed with an international and diverse audience in mind.

The lecturers are experts from universities, European and national authorities, as well as international and national transport companies.

Students and Graduates

The program addresses a broad group of professionals with varying academic backgrounds, mostly in (transport) engineering and technology, consulting, management and economics. However, applicants with other academic backgrounds coupled with working experience in a related field are also encouraged to apply, personal motivation plays an important role in the selection process. Class diversity is one of its greatest assets, as students will not only learn from lecturers with science and business backgrounds but also from each other.

Graduates of this MBA will have career possibilities within transport supplier and equipment industries, national or international organizations, as well as with national, regional or municipal public authorities.

Potential employment sectors include, but are not limited to, vehicle and sustainable mobility service design; infrastructure or transport service, operations, and administration; transport network planning, development, marketing or regulation; auditing or management of sustainable development policy in a company or public and private institutions. Learning and studying in small groups of up to 30 students means excellent and tailored learning condition

Program Content

The growing environmental impact of transport systems, as well as their energy voracity, require new approaches and new concepts. This MBA offers an integrative design across disciplines, addressing a range of different perspectives. The theory and practice-driven approach give students both a conceptual understanding and the skills needed to tackle practical problems, covering the needs of strategy development, analysis and implementation, complex decision-making and project management. The program’s interdisciplinary content, which covers the social, economic, technical and governance aspects of tomorrow’s sustainable mobility, gives students and future employees a distinctive profile and qualifies them for a leading position in the mobility sector.

The MBA program is taught in English over a period of three semesters.

The first semester is dedicated to the fundamentals of mobility and sustainability, considering these issues from different perspectives such as economic factors, social and managerial elements, and naturally including technological drivers.

In the second semester, trends and the future of transport, as well as the transition toward sustainable mobility, will be the main focus, which also encompasses the issue of governance and management of complex structures. A lecture series will provide world-based case studies and different perspectives from experts.

In the third semester, elective courses are offered for specialization and conclude with writing the master thesis.

All semesters include lectures, tutorials, seminars as well as company visits and excursions, online materials related to practice and extracurricular activities.

Modules

Technology (9 ECTS)

In this module, students review and gain more in-depth general technical knowledge and knowledge of energy technologies and systems in the context of current developments and taking into account social responsibility and sustainable development. The module also covers the most important technological insights, and the technological foundations of the subsequent modules are explained. Students will be able to define and evaluate various procedures and apply them to selected cases in the transport sector and present options for optimizing them.

Economics (6 ECTS)

This module is an introduction to economics. It covers the most important principles of economics taking into account social responsibility and sustainable development. The module engages with the latest research and encourages a critical and reflective approach in providing a foundation in economics for subsequent modules. Students are able to identify specialized knowledge and aspects of economics and to compare general and selected cases from the transport sector.

Business (9 ECTS)

This module is an introduction to business studies. It covers the most important principles of business studies taking into account social responsibility and sustainable development. The module engages with the latest research and encourages a critical and reflective approach in providing a grounding in business studies for subsequent modules. Students will be able to define the main features of business studies, apply problem-solving skills to case studies using different fields of knowledge and to present them for the transport sector.

Law (6 ECTS)

This module is an introduction to legal principles and the legal framework for the transport sector at the international, European and national level. Students will be able to use their own initiative to combine legal knowledge and skills in solving complex problems, evaluate cases independently and analyze and summarize legal situations.

Management (12 ECTS)

Students are able to independently identify, analyze and design strategic approaches taking into account the consequences of environmental changes for planning, management and controlling. They do this by incorporating interdependent technological, economic, business and legal processes in companies and organizations and taking into account social responsibility and sustainable development. Students will be able to define the main features of management in the transport sector, apply problem-solving skills to case studies using different fields of knowledge and to present options for optimizing the transport sector.

Lecture Series (6 ECTS)

The main aim is to explore current perspectives in the discourse on sustainable mobility by involving practitioners and researchers in this field.

Mobility Actors and Practices (6 ECTS)

After taking this module, students will:-have acquired a knowledge base in transport systems, and sustainable mobility theories, concepts, and approaches with the focus on mobility as a social and technological system-be able to identify and address social, economic and technological conflicts and points of tension in the implementation of the transition towards sustainable mobility.

Mobility Trends and Future Studies (6 ECTS)

After taking this module, students will:-understand mobility trends in order to be able to address the complexity of the open and network-based transport systems of the future -be able to evaluate social and technological transformation and change-have a firm grounding in the development of forecasts-be able to use this knowledge to construct scenarios and plan long-term developments in mobility transformation.

Compulsory Electives

Two of the following modules must be selected:

Business Models and Investments in Sustainable Mobility (6 ECTS) The students will know the fundamentals of financial instruments and business practices and apply those to implement sustainable mobility. They will learn to develop economic and financial models in transport investment as well as design traditional and innovative business models.

Data Analysis and ICT in Mobility (6 ECTS)

The students will learn the fundamentals of data analysis and modeling to support decision-making and can assess current and future practices of the digitalization within the transport sector and services. Students are able to recognize disruptive factors as a consequence of the digitalization within the mobility sector and find suitable solutions as well as develop future scenarios.

Urban and Transport Planning in Emerging Economies (6 ECTS)

Concepts and Experiences (6 ECTS): Students will get acquainted with transport and urban planning: they will develop knowledge of smart city concepts, theories, and criticism. Case studies introduce mobility challenges in emerging countries and students will learn how to develop suitable and effective instruments to address these.

Alternatively, students may also choose from an elective offered by the Energy Management (MBA) or Building Sustainability (MBA) programs.

Master Thesis (18 ECTS)


About the EUREF-Campus

The main location for lectures, seminars, and activities is the European Energy Forum (EUREF). The Campus around the historical Gasometer in Berlin-Schöneberg is a cluster of mobility and energy start-ups and companies pushing forward the energy transition and smart city concepts. It serves as a testing ground for new technologies and innovative business ideas based on the philosophy of sustainability. The Campus achieved already in 2014 the CO2-climate targets of the German Federal Government for 2050. The classrooms at the EUREF-Campus offer an excellent learning environment where students learn in close cooperation with leading enterprises and institutions to become acquainted also with practical projects in the field of energy, infrastructure, and mobility.


About the Technische Universitaet Berlin

The internationally renowned Technische Universitaet Berlin (TUB) is located in Germany's capital city at the heart of Europe. The academic activities are focused on achieving sharply-defined goals: building a distinctive profile for our university, ensuring exceptional performance in research and teaching, providing our graduates with excellent qualifications and a modern approach to university administration.

The TU Berlin strives to promote the dissemination of knowledge and to facilitate technological progress through adherence to the core principles of excellence and quality. Strong regional, national, and international networking with partners in science and industry is an important aspect in these endeavors. The internationally renowned research-intensive university is dedicated to promoting science and technology for the benefit of broader society and committed to the principle of sustainability.


Other courses offered by Technische Universitaet Berlin

Building Sustainability – Management Methods for Energy Efficiency (MBA)

Energy Management (MBA)

Master in European and International Energy Law (MBL)