General Questions and Answers About Basic and Specialized Internships for the Mechanical Engineering, Business and Industrial Engineering, and Digital Engineering Programs

• Does the internship report need to include a company stamp?
  Yes.
• The internship certificate states, “The report has been reviewed and countersigned”—does this mean the internship report must also be stamped and signed by the company?
  Yes.
• If the certificate includes a company stamp—is it sufficient for the internship report to have only a signature but no company stamp?
  No.
• Is a scanned signature or a scanned stamp sufficient for a valid document?
  No. A document requires a handwritten signature or a qualified electronic signature.
  https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qualifizierte_elektronische_Signatur
  https://www.bsi.bund.de/DE/Topics/Public-Administration/Modern-State/Electronic-Signature/Glossary/esigglossar.html?nn=450092#Glossary_Q
• Are there exceptions when a company stamp is not required?
  If the report from the internship provider has been electronically signed (“Qualified Electronic Signature”), a company stamp isnot required. These reports can be submitted electronically.
• When is a company stamp rejected as invalid?
  By affixing a company stamp and signature, the internship host company authorizes the report for review by the university. This serves as a declaration that an authorized representative of the company has read the report and agrees with its content. Therefore, any form in which the identity of the issuer is unclear, or where it is implausible that the report submitted to the Internship Office is identical to the one presented to the issuer, will be rejected. This is the case if:
  • The company stamp or signature is obviously printed or copied, and/or
  • The countersigned page bearing the company stamp and the rest of the report were clearly not printed together.
• When is an electronic signature rejected as invalid?
  By applying the electronic signature, the internship host company authorizes the report for review by the university. This serves as a declaration that an authorized representative of the company has read the report and agrees with its content. Therefore, any form in which the identity of the issuer is unclear, or where it is implausible that the report on file with the Internship Office is identical to the one submitted by the issuer, will be rejected. This is the case if:
  • The document was modified after it was signed.
  • The issuer of the signature is not verified by a valid certificate chain.
• How can I tell if my document is digitally signed?
  Not all PDF viewers can display signatures. Here are a few that can:
  • Adobe Acrobat Reader: Signature pane
  • PDF XChange Editor: Show signature bar
  • Edge Browser: When you open the document, a bar appears with the message: “This document is digitally signed.”

• Do I need to provide proof of the basic internship/pre-internship at the time of enrollment (1)?
  For the degree programs in Mechanical Engineering, Business and Industrial Engineering, or Automotive Engineering, proof of the pre-internship is not required at the time of enrollment. However, since no time is set aside for a pre-internship or basic internship during the course of study, the pre-internship should be completed before enrollment.
• Do I need to provide proof of the basic internship/pre-internship at the time of enrollment (2)?
  Proof of the internship is provided by its approval by the Internship Office. This approval must be granted by the end of the third semester; otherwise, you will not be permitted to take any exams until the basic internship has been approved. What matters is not that you have submitted the report by the end of the third semester, but that approval by the Internship Office has also been granted by that time. Please note that the approval process can take several weeks (or even longer, especially if the internship documentation is insufficient).
• Do I have to submit the basic internship/pre-internship in the fourth semester?
  The basic internship/pre-internship must be approved by the end of the third academic semester; otherwise, you will not be permitted to take any further exams.
  The reference to the fourth semester is a widespread piece of misinformation of unknown origin.
• Where in the examination regulations does it state that I can no longer register for exams after the third semester if the basic internship has not been approved?
  Part of the examination regulations (PO2010) is the corresponding supplement to the internship regulations. Article III, §2 states:
  
  “Proof of completion of the basic internship, as recognized by the Internship Office, must be submitted to the Examinations Office no later than after the third academic semester. It is a prerequisite for admission to all written and oral exams registered starting in the fourth academic semester.”
  
  In short: Students subject to the Study Regulations effective from 2010 may no longer register for exams starting in the fourth semester. (This means they may no longer take exams that require registration. They must, however, take exams for which they are automatically registered, such as retakes after failing the initial attempt.) Students may not register for exams again until the basic practicum has been fully completed and approved.

• When should internship reports be submitted?
  Documents related to the internship must be submitted no later than six months after the end of the internship. Documents related to internships or apprenticeships completed before the start of your degree program must be submitted no later than six months after the start of your degree program.

• Where should the internship reports be submitted?
  Internship reports must be submitted in person during office hours at the Internship Office. Please bring the following documents with you:

  • Internship report
  • Original internship certificate
  • A copy of the certificate

  If necessary, reports can also be submitted by mail. However, please allow for a longer processing time (4 to 5 weeks) in this case. This is particularly important to keep in mind if you have deadlines to meet.

• Can you review my draft internship report?
  As a general rule, the Internship Office does not review unfinished internship reports. However, we are happy to offer you a non-binding consultation with a preliminary review of your documents during office hours.
  
  The difference between a review and a non-binding consultation lies in the following points:

  Submitted for review	Submitted for consultation
  Report is: complete, printed, stapled, stamped by the company	No specific format requirements
  Will be taken into account by the submission deadline	Not taken into account if submitted after the deadline
  Upon successful review, the internship will be recognized.	After the consultation, the complete documents should be submitted for review.

• I have completed an apprenticeship as [...], which is recognized as an internship. Do I need to submit an internship report?
  To have your internship recognized, you must submit a report. You should discuss the scope and content of the report during a consultation at the Internship Office.

• Is working from home allowed?
  No.
• Is part-time work permitted?
  No. Internships must be completed on a full-time basis.
• Can the industrial internship be completed at a retail company?
  No. The industrial internship must be completed at an industrial company and serves as an initial introduction to engineering practice.
• Can the industrial internship be completed at an auto repair shop?
  No. The industrial internship must be completed at an industrial company and serves as an initial introduction to engineering practice. For the Mechanical Engineering and Business and Industrial Engineering programs, an auto repair shop is not a suitable internship location, as companies in the maintenance and service sectors are not permitted.
• Can the industrial internship be completed at a freight forwarding company?
  No. The industrial internship must be completed at an industrial company.
• When is “grinding” considered “working on forming machines”?
  Rule of thumb: If the grinding machine weighs more than 500 kg, it is most likely a forming machine.
• Can the specialized internship be completed entirely in the areas of “materials management,” “logistics,” “purchasing,” “organization,” “data processing,” “human resources,” “accounting,” “finance,” “taxes,” "Sales," "Distribution," "Marketing," "Market Research," etc.?
  No. The industrial internship serves as an initial introduction to engineering practice. Parts of the specialized internship (up to a total of 2 weeks) maybe completed in the areas mentioned. However, the main focus of the specialized internship must be completed in departments where mechanical engineers or industrial engineers specializing in mechanical engineering typically work.

• Can the internship be split up?
  Both the general and specialized internships can besplit up. These parts may be completed at the same company or at different companies.
• I completed my internship at two different companies. Should I organize my report by topic or by company?
  It is not recommended to combine internships at different companies into a single report. These are separate internships—so it makes sense to write separate reports.
• Is it possible to complete the specialized internship for the bachelor’s program and the subsequent master’s program immediately one after the other at the same company? What do I need to keep in mind to ensure that both internships are recognized?
  As a rule, this is possible without any issues.
  • The following rule must be observed: During the internship, you must work on different subject areas or tasks. Only then will the internship be recognized. Example: At least 7 weeks in design, followed by at least 6 weeks in quality assurance. Any other combination of subject areas listed in the internship regulations for the specialized internship is also possible.
  • You must write two separate reports. You cannot submit the same report twice. Both reports must be signed and stamped by the company. The certificate may cover the entire period, so you only need one certificate.
• Does the internship need to be registered in unisono?
  The internship does not need to be registered in unisono.
• What is the difference between individual and group office hours?
  Individual office hours take place behind closed doors (one-on-one consultation), while group officehours are held with the door open. Both can be attended without an appointment.

• Do we have to use the internship office’s certificate templates for the internship certificate?
  The certificate templates simply ensure that no important information is missing from the internship certificate. This includes:

  • The intern’s full name (including place of birth)
  • Full address of the company
  • Internship period
  • Indication of days absent
  • Description of duties
  • Evaluation
  • Company stamp and signature

  Any other certificate template that contains the relevant information may be used.

• The internship host company requires a signature from a university employee on a confidentiality agreement. Who is authorized to provide this signature?
  A confidentiality agreement is just as unnecessary at the University of Siegen as it is at all other colleges and universities. All staff members are sworn to uphold confidentiality. In addition, the internship report must be reviewed—in disputed cases, even by the examination committee—which ultimately renders the signature of a single staff member meaningless. Therefore, if the internship host company has any issues with the report’s content, that content must be adapted or altered so that the intern is permitted to use the report.
• My company needs a certificate confirming that this is a mandatory internship. Where can I get it?
  Send an email request to the Internship Office. Please include the following information:
  • Name
  • matriculation number
  • Date and place of birth
  • Degree program (e.g.,“BSc/MSc Business and Industrial Engineering”)
  • Full company address
  • Start and end dates of the internship (date)

• What characterizes an “engineering report”?
  A technical report is a report intended for an expert reader—in the case of an engineering report, an engineer or a master craftsman. The prior knowledge of anaverage expert(English: “a person having ordinary skill in the art”) can be assumed to be known.
• What formal requirements must the internship report meet?
  • The cover page must include your name, matriculation number, degree program, company address, and the internship period
  • A signed declaration of originality
  • Company countersignature (company stamp + signature) and, if applicable, a restriction note

• Does a chronological structure make sense for the internship report?
  Achronological structure is not appropriate for aninternship report. A systematic structure based on relevance is more appropriate.

  With this type of structure, the order of the sections (e.g., chapters, subsections) is based not on chronological sequence but on relevance. They are sorted in descending order of importance.