School of Advanced Professional Studies

Artificial Intelligence for Connected Industries (M. Sc.)

The AI4CI Master is a European master program which covers:

  • fundamentals of artificial intelligence and machine learning applied to networked systems
  • advanced automation systems for industrial networks and robotics
  • advanced network architectures, IoT and computer systems

The lecturers include world-class academics from our European partners and industry experts.

The master program is open in the following European Universities with different study modalities. It is supported by the Erasmus+ framework.
 

Target group

The part-time master's program Artificial Intelligence for Connected Industries (AI4CI) is designed for professionals in technical, scientific, and engineering fields who wish to expand their knowledge of artificial intelligence (AI) and specialize in its application to connected industrial environments. It is particularly suited for professionals working in sectors such as mechanical engineering, robotics, information technology, electronics, automotive engineering, or automation technology who want to acquire hands-on expertise in AI and connected technologies. Both recent graduates and professionals with extensive work experience are welcome.

The part-time structure of the program makes it easier for participants to balance their studies with their professional careers, thereby also accommodating students with family or other commitments.

The AI4CI master is co-funded by the European Commission, Digital Europe Programme, managed by HADEA (contract nb: 101123524).

Project duration: 01.11.2023 - 31.10.2027

Costs/Funding

Due to EU funding, we can offer tuition waivers covering approximately 80% of the tuition fees for enrolled students during the project funding period. Please note that an additional administrative semester fee of 182 euros is charged once per semester, regardless of the number of modules chosen. Waivers are only available for enrolled students.

Partner Universities:

Prerequisites: one year of qualified professional experience after the first higher education degree or academic degree with 180 ECTS + two years of qualified professional experience after the first higher education degree

ECTS Credits: 90

Study fee: Reduced fee for enrolled students + administration fee. For further details, please see the module description.

Start of study: winter semester: october | summer semester: april
Application period for winter semester: April 1st to May 15th and June 1st  to July 15th
Application period for summer semester: October 15th to November 15th and  December 1st to January 15th

Language of instruction: English level B2


Application for a study place
 

Admissions statutes 
 

Module Groups

The Artificial Intelligence for Connected Industries Master’s Degree program with a total of 90 Credit Points (CP) is divided into Compulsory Modules, Compulsory Elective Modules and Free Elective Modules. There are three Groups of Compulsory Elective Modules, from which at least 12 CP must be achieved in each.
Free Elective Modules can be elected either at partner universities (listed above) or of the programs Sensorsysstemtechnik (Sensor Systems Engineering) and Business Analytics at Ulm University. A minimum of 6 CP must be achieved from modules of the Free Elective Modules Group. A list of applicable modules is available at the examination board. The remaining 12 CP can be chosen from the Compulsory Elective Modules and Free Elective Modules. 

Compulsory Modules

The main goal of this course is to cover the basic concepts related to machine learning projects and present the main ML models and algorithms and how to apply them to connected systems.

Semester time: winter semester

Credits points according to ECTS: 6

Fee upon enrollment: 234 Euro
Fee for contact studies: 1.290 Euro

To the module

As part of this module, students expand their ability to independently work on a topic from current research in the field of Artificial Intelligence for Connected Systems, taking scientific criteria into account, and to write a written paper about it, the form of which meets all the requirements of scientific texts.

Semester time: winter semester

Credits points according to ECTS: 30

Fee upon enrollment: 360 Euro* or 900 Euro**

To the module

* If the Master’s thesis is conducted outside the university, the infrastructure of the supervising instructor’s institute is not available for use during the preparation of the thesis.

** If the Master’s thesis is carried out at the university, students are provided with a fully equipped office space for the duration of their thesis, including access to the resources of the institute where the thesis is being conducted.

Compulsory Elective Modules - Processes and Data Management

In this module, participants learn to analyze, model, and optimize business processes at a professional level. Furthermore, they gain in-depth insights into their digital transformation and automation using process-oriented information systems. They can identify the requirements for implementing process-oriented information systems, describe the key characteristics, components, and functions of such systems, and place them within an overall architecture.

Semester time: winter semester

Credits points according to ECTS: 6

Fee upon enrollment: 300 Euro
Fee for contact studies: 1.620 Euro

To the module

In the microcredential Project Management – Processes, Activities, and Practices, you will learn techniques and processes based on best practices from the project management community and apply them practically through examples. You will become familiar with the challenges encountered in project management and be able to evaluate measures, for example, in risk and opportunity management or quality management, to make informed decisions and ensure the success of your project.

Semester time: summer semester

Credits points according to ECTS: 6

Fee upon enrollment: 234 Euro
Fee for contact studies: 1.290 Euro

To the module

The students will learn various data analysis techniques and will apply these techniques for solving data mining problems using special software systems and tools.

Semester time: summer semester

Credits points according to ECTS: 6

Fee upon enrollment: 300 Euro
Fee for contact studies: 1.620 Euro

To the module

All courses of the program AI4CI

Free Elective Modules

Master's Degree Programme Sensor Systems Engineering (M.Sc.)

Master's degree Programme Business Analytics (M.Sc.)

All courses of the program AI4CI

Compulsory Elective Modules - Systems and Networks

Students can explain the essential requirements and unique challenges of wireless ad-hoc networking; they can identify differences to classical wired networks and explain them.

Semester time: winter semester

Credits points according to ECTS: 6

Fee upon enrollment: 234 Euro
Fee for contact studies: 1.290 Euro

To the module

The goal of this module is to provide young prospective engineers or computer scientists with formal mathematical and methodical tools so that they are enabled to predict and avoid real-time bugs.

Semester time: winter semester

Credits points according to ECTS: 6

Fee upon enrollment: 234 Euro
Fee for contact studies: 1.290 Euro

To the module

All courses of the program AI4CI

Compulsory Elective Modules - Automatics and Robots

The concepts of signals and systems are powerful tools for any engineer dealing with information bearing, measurable physical quantitites. Areas of applications include, among others, communications engineering, signal processing, control engineering, and systems engineering.

Semester time: summer semester

Credits points according to ECTS: 6

Fee upon enrollment: 234 Euro
Fee for contact studies: 1.290 Euro

To the module

To an increasing degreee, requirements on safety, sustainability and economic feasibility of technical products and production plants call for modern approaches of control-theory-based methods. Especially in the environment of control theory, simple and heuristically designed controllers have been reaching their limits. Systematic design of model-based controllers in time domain allows considering of non-linearities and has the potential to achieve significantly improved controller results.

Semester time: winter semester

Credits points according to ECTS: 6

Fee upon enrollment: 234 Euro
Fee for contact studies: 1.290 Euro

To the module

The module teaches methods of mathematical modeling for technical processes based on physical principles. The main goal is to develop the ability to derive suitable models for controller and observer design and to parameterize them using identification methods.

Semester time: winter semester

Credits points according to ECTS: 6

Fee upon enrollment: 234 Euro
Fee for contact studies: 1.290 Euro

To the module

This course gives an introduction to the Robot Operating System (ROS) including available tools that are commonly used in robotics. With the help of examples, the course provides a starting point for working with robots. The course covers how to create software including simulation, to interface sensors and actuators, and to integrate control algorithms.

Semester time: winter semester

Credits points according to ECTS: 3

Fee upon enrollment: 117 Euro
Fee for contact studies: 645 Euro

To the module

At the beginning of the project, the range of contents that should be covered in the project will be discussed in detail and the relevant methods will be identified. This is accompanied by a literature search, reading, and discussion phase. In this phase relevant mathematical and computational methods will be selected and discussed. In the second phase, the team starts to implement the experimental design on a simulated robot. Regular team meetings and supervisory consultations lead to an iterated improvement of the software. In the third phase, the thoroughly tested software will be transferred to the robot and tested in a real or simulated environment. The results are written up in a final project report and are presented in a final project presentation.

Semester time: winter semester

Credits points according to ECTS: 3

Fee upon enrollment: 117 Euro
Fee for contact studies: 645 Euro

To the module

All courses of the program AI4CI

Module Handbook   Study Outline   Admissions Statutes   Language Regulation   FAQ

Course Director

Prof. Dr.
Birte Glimm

Course Coordination

Steffen Moser

Course Coordination

Rebecca Schöninger

Study Format

For the self-study component of the program, video lectures and/or detailed scripts with comprehensive information about the course content are provided. These videos and scripts have been specifically developed for working professionals, following the didactic concept of Ulm University. Each microcredential/course within the program includes exercises, case studies, examples, and/or quizzes.

Your lecturer and/or mentor will offer a kick-off meeting (online, at Ulm University, or in a hybrid format), a final meeting (online, at Ulm University, or in a hybrid format), and, depending on the microcredential/course you are taking, online seminars at regular intervals. These meetings will help you navigate the exercises and engage with the learning topics. Additionally, an online forum will be available for interaction with other students, along with a video conference room for study group meetings.