Student projects
Solutions for companies and organisations
The School of Business at the University of Applied Sciences and Arts, Northwestern Switzerland, is a practically oriented educational institution. A key feature is our close collaboration with companies and organisations. Our student projects, of which there are 450 per year, are an important instrument for safeguarding the practical orientation and the transfer of knowledge between the university and practice. In the context of supervised projects, students solve specific assignments for your company and organisation.
As a client you can expect a well-founded solution to your assignment. You will obtain access to current specialist knowledge. Your ideas can be made concrete or a basis for decision-making can be developed. Analysis is conducted methodically and from an unbiased perspective. Lecturers supervise the projects and ensure that the scope of the assignment and the objectives remain in focus.
You can find more project ideas in our project database.
Companies, public or non-profit organisations, as well as associations, clubs and individuals can submit projects. The projects can have a regional, national or international focus.
Student project | Bachelor Thesis (Bök, BIT, IM, WI) | Practical Work (WI, BIT) Project Work (Bök, IM) |
Team size | 1 up to 2 | 3 up to 5 |
Time exposure (per student) | 300 h | 300 h Practical Work 150 h Project Work |
Academic year | 6th or 8th semester | 5th or 7th semester |
Costs per project 1 (excl. VAT and plus expenses2) | CHF 900.– | CHF 2 000.– |
Project start | Spring and autumn | Autumn |
1 This fee does not apply in the case of a thesis undertaken on behalf of a client that employs the student on a part-time, minimum 50% basis. The flat-rate fee for processing a topic will be charged to the client by the FHNW School of Business following completion of the project in question.
2 Expenses of the students on agreement for printing, travel, postage, telephone, etc. These are typically in the region of CHF 200 to CHF 500 per project. They must be agreed with the
students at the beginning of the project and must be borne by the client. The students will invoice the expenses directly to the client.
Conversion of an idea into a business plan, concept for founding a company, suggestions for succession planning, strategy checks, logistics
Regulatory requirements and their implementation, new customer care concepts, social media as a distribution channel, risk management, asset management
Business Artificial Intelligence
Application of artificial intelligence in marketing, logistics, customer service, optimization, etc., identification and evaluation of potential applications for AI, automation of tasks and business processes using artificial intelligence, application of generative AI such as ChatGPT, machine learning, dialogue systems, chatbots, agentic AI, robotics
Working capital management, foreign currency management in SMEs, introduction of a company accounting system, economic feasibility studies, overhead cost controlling, choice of suitable accounting standards for SMEs, efficiency gains from limited audits
Market potential and market attractiveness analysis for existing and new products, strategic marketing concepts, needs and customer satisfaction analysis, pricing and online marketing strategy, marketing communications strategies, social media concept
Introduction of an occupational health and safety management system, development of a company-specific competence model, concept for employee development
Preparation of an integrated corporate communications concept, strategies and proposal for implementation to optimise internal communication, reputation analyses
Analysis of macroeconomic costs and benefits, impact of political measures on sectors and local business, future of local tourism
Data management, modelling and analysis, data warehousing, management information systems, e-business, digitization, artificial intelligence, creation of specifications, evaluation of standard software, business processes, information and knowledge management, intranet, web applications, IT security
You may submit projects at any time. The main processing times are:
Time schedule | Project start spring | Project start autumn |
Student project type | Bachelor Thesis | Bachelor Thesis Project Work Practical Work |
Entry deadline | Early February | Early August |
Topic allocation | Mid March | End August |
Processing time | March until August | September until January |
You may submit projects at any time. Individual projects may also start outside of the main processing period.
We would be pleased if you would entrust our students with any current issues and we will provide you with the support you require for the submission of a topic. You can submit your topic or project by using the submission form.
The students choose their projects based on their preferences. It might therefore happen that a project is not chosen immediately and it could perhaps take a number of months before the work starts. However, those responsible for the student projects endeavour to ensure that your topic is processed as soon as possible. If a project is on a tight deadline, we can also inform you of other forms of collaboration.
Students studying in German usually write their work in German. Students of International Management and Business Information Technology write in English and given the background of the School of Business’ strategy of internationalisation, we very much welcome projects conducted in English.
The students receive technical and methodological support during the entire processing period from a specialist from the FHNW School of Business.
The level of supervision required on the part of the client varies depending on the assignment. You should expect to reserve around 30 hours per project for meetings etc. During the processing period it is important that the flow of information between you and the students is guaranteed. If it is expedient for the assignment at hand, it can be worthwhile to provide the student(s) with a suitable workspace upon consultation. The concluding evaluation of the student(s)' work is carried out jointly by you and the lecturer.
The students should be able to prove that they can understand a problem in all its complexity and can find an appropriate solution on a scientific basis. They should demonstrate that they can independently apply the knowledge they have gained in their studies to specific practical assignments. In addition, they must apply their social and organisational skills in solving the assignment.
The subject-related, expert supervision by lecturers, practice-related knowledge and the generally high level of commitment of the students allow practical solutions to be found for your company. Over 90 percent of the commissioning companies and organisations are satisfied with the results. However, the School of Business cannot provide any guarantee for the complete attainment of project objectives.
The client’s information is treated confidentially. However, in the spirit of the course and the transfer of knowledge within the university, it is very desirable that the concluding documents can be made accessible to the public. However, you may declare them to be confidential. They then remain sealed and are not accessible to any third parties.
The project goals are geared entirely towards your needs. The milestones of the student projects have been thoroughly tested and involve you, the student(s) concerned, and the supervising lecturer.
Milestones | Description | When |
1 Kick-off-Meeting |
| Upon commencement of the work |
2 Proposal | The students submit the developed proposal to you and the lecturer for official approval | 2-4 weeks after the kick-off-meeting |
3 Status-Meeting |
| During the course of the work |
4 Project conclusion | Concluding presentation, followed by a discussion of the results and handover of the concluding documentation | Upon completion of the project |
5 Public management summary | The public version of the management summary shall be submitted to the client for approval. It is intended to be published on the FHNW website. | After completion of the project |
6 Conclusion |
| After completion of the project |
We had a very good experience with student projects over the last years. Our company actually won the third and final round of Venture Kick, a start-up competition where the winning business idea receives CHF 130'000. The output of these projects was definitely a big factor that contributed to this success.
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