International at home
International at home - Your options
Business English
Would you like to strengthen your English skills for the workplace? The WiSo Faculty offers Business English language courses designed to help you confidently communicate in any professional setting. Our highly interactive classes include discussions, presentations and written assignments, with a focus on essential workplace language skills for job applications, meetings and other professional situations. Benefit from small group activities, constant individual feedback and highly experienced native English-speaking instructors from our cooperation partner, the School of English (Englisches Institut Köln).
Whether you are preparing for your next job or aiming to thrive in an international business environment, this course gives you the tools to succeed.
Important Update: Due to a higher demand in the past and a limit on available spots, course spots might be distributed based on the principle "first come, first served" until all available spots are taken. Participating students will be informed accordingly for each semester in advance.
Registration for the summer semester 2026 is closed.
Information on the registration for the winter semester 2026/27 will be published here soon.
Registration information
Registration takes place via ILIAS. Before you can actually register for a course, we need to know your starting level of English to allocate you to a course that matches your current level. To do this you will need to take an online placement test. Placement tests will be offered roughly from mid-June till September for the winter semester and from mid-January till March for the summer semester. If you have already taken a placement test before or provide us with a valid English language certificate (see list of accepted English language on ILIAS or in our FAQs), we can use the result to allocate you and you do not have to take a placement test again.
Once registration is closed and we know the starting course level of all students, the actual course selection begins based on the level allocation. This will happen roughly from late September onwards for the winter semester and late March for the summer semester. If possibel, the course selection starts after the second enrolment period (Belegphase) has ended.
Each course level requires a minimum number of students and if we do not have enough registrations we may not be able to offer a particular course. In this case we will try to find an appropriate solution for the students concerned. This usually only applies to courses at level A1 to B1. Courses at level B2 or C1 will always be offered and with different time slots on offer.
Timetable
Each course takes place once a week and usually starts in the second week of the lecture period unless communicated otherwise. The exact timetable for the semester will be finalised once all students have taken the placement test and we can estimate how many courses need to be provided.
Classes will usually take place during the following time slots:
Monday to Thursday: 09:00-12:00, 14:00-17:00 and 18:00-21:00.
For each semester it will be determined which courses are offered for which time frames.
The courses consist of twelve sessions, with the ultimate session reserved for the end of course exam.
Credit points
The course is worth six credit points. To pass the course and receive credit points, you need to attend at least nine out of twelve sessions, have registered for and participated in the end-of-semester exam. A certificate will be issued regardless of the exam registration in KLIPS but requires the minimum attendance of nine out of twelve sessions as well.
As a Bachelor student of the WiSo Faculty, you can choose the course as part of Studium Integrale (SI). As a Master student you can take the course as part of your extracurricular modules (EA = Extracurriculares Angebot). Also, incoming guest students of the WiSo Faculty are eligible to receive credit points.
Course certificate
Additionally, you will receive a certificate from the Englisches Institut Köln indicating the language level you have achieved at the end of the course.
You can use the certificate to support your application for an internship or a job, or to apply for a semester abroad during your Bachelor's degree studies (see STAP Bachelor, see details on the procedure in the application manual) and for one of the summer schools (see WiSo@ Academic Short Programmes), both of which are organised by the WiSo Faculty.
The structure of the course and its learning objectives are aligned with the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR), a guideline used to describe the achievements of language learners across Europe. The levels defined by the CEFR are as follows:
A1 - Beginner
A2 - Elementary / Pre-intermediate
B1 - Intermediate
B2 - Upper Intermediate
C1 - Advanced Intermediate
Video tutorials on the registration process
Registration (Part 1)
Registration (Part 2)
Registration (Part 3)
Further Information - Business English
If you have any questions, you will probably find an answer in our FAQs. If this is not the case, you can contact us via email at wirtschaftsenglisch(at)wiso.uni-koeln.de
The WiSo Faculty International Buddy Programme
Each term, the International Relations Center at the WiSo Faculty (ZIB WiSo) and the PIM and CEMS Student and Alumni Club Cologne e.V. organise International Buddies for guest students from the WiSo Faculty's partner universities. ZIB WiSo welcomes students and doctoral candidates interested in mentoring guest students for a semester.
This spring we expect the majority of our incomings to arrive in mid/late March or early April depending on their lodging situation.
Your benefits as an International Buddy:
- Meet students from all over the world
- Receive first-hand information about partner universities as an optimal preparation for your exchange term
- Participate in the "Welcome Programme"
- Develop your language, intercultural and organizational skills
- Demonstrate social commitment during your studies with a certificate
Activities of an International Buddy:
- Contacting and bonding with your Incoming students
- Collecting the keys to the flat or organising the hand-over of keys prior to arrival (if required)
- Welcoming the Incoming students to Cologne on their arrival
- Guidance in dealing with public authorities and settling to Cologne
- Introducing the WiSo faculty from the perspective of a local student
- Helping to integrate the Incomings to the local student life
Register is currently closed and will re-open in Summer 2026.
Links
Registration for the International Buddy Programme is currently closed.
Contact
Jens Funk
Sam Sipponen
Email: incomings@wiso.uni-koeln.de
Renting out your flat
Are you going abroad to study or for an internship and looking to rent out your flat while you're away? The ZIB WiSo Incomings Team would be very happy to forward your room offer to guest students spending their term abroad at the WiSo Faculty. For more information, please contact the ZIB WiSo Incomings Team: incomings(at)wiso.uni-koeln(dot)de or complete the accommodation form available under "Downloads" on this page.
Furthermore, feel free to list your room on the Internation Housing Portal, organised by the University of Cologne.
Engaging in student organisations
Cologne has a wide range of student organisations that provide opportunities for students to experience an international environment and develop their leadership potential. They include the Organisationsforum Wirtschaftskongress (OFW) (which organises the annual World Business Dialogue), AIESEC and the PIM & CEMS Student and Alumni Club Cologne.
PIM & CEMS Club Cologne
The PIM & CEMS Student and Alumni Club Cologne e.V. is an independent association of students and alumni of the WiSo Faculty at the University of Cologne.
Its main intention is to establish a network between its members through a variety of activities and to support incoming international students in their first weeks and throughout their term at the University of Cologne.
The PIM & CEMS Club also aims to provide its members with insights into the working environment. With a variety of workshops throughout the year, members get the chance to gain first-hand experience and to establish important contacts for their future career.
The PIM & CEMS Club Cologne offers you the opportunity to
- gain practical experience through corporate events
- improve your language skills
- take part in international study trips
- be part of a network of more than 1,500 students and alumni
- glean tips and advice from our alumni based on their professional experience.
With over 1,500 members, the PIM & CEMS Club is one of the largest international networks of its kind in Germany!
For more information, please visit the PIM & CEMS Club's website.
OFW – Organisationsforum Wirtschaftskongress
The World Business Dialogue brings together the leaders of today and tomorrow to enhance a meaningful exchange – nowadays also in the digital world. The organization behind the World Business Dialogue is the Organisationsforum Wirtschaftskongress (OFW).
The World Business Dialogue hosts the podcast "The Dialogue" (available on every podcast platform), a video series, a series of blog articles, and many more digital formats where students from all over the world participate and raise their voices. Be it a young founder from Canada, a student from South Africa, or a member of the German Bundestag – the World Business Dialogue is a network, a community, and a platform for bright minds and pressing topics on the global agenda.
The organization enables students and young professionals from all around the world to share their opinions and shape their own future by discussing topics that matter with top executives and notable influencers in business, science, and politics and most importantly to discuss among themselves to gain new perspectives.
For more information on the World Business Dialogue, please visit their website.
AIESEC
AIESEC is a global platform for young people that aims to explore and develop their leadership potential. It is a non-political, independent, not-for-profit organisation run by students and recent graduates of institutions of higher education. Its members are interested in world issues, leadership development, cultural understanding and experiential learning.
Founded in 1948, the organisation today spans 126 countries and territories and has supported over 1,000,000 young people. Alumni work in business enterprises and NGOs and include world leaders such as Nobel Peace Prize laureate Martti Atisaari of Finland.
Every year, AIESEC facilitates tens of thousands of life-changing experiences for students and recent graduates. Be it professional internships, volunteering experiences or being a member of AIESEC on campus, AIESEC offers young people a chance to discover their leadership potential. Through its extensive partnerships, ranging from multinationals to social enterprises, AIESEC gives young people the opportunity to develop valuable skills and networks for their future success.
For more information on AIESEC, please visit their website.
International options for WiSo students
Contact Buddy Programme
Jens Funk
Sam Sipponen
Email: incomings(at)wiso.uni-koeln(dot)de