Welcome, dear first-year students of 2025 in the Bachelor's program in Business Information Systems!

Before the semester begins

Before you can start your first semester, there are a few things you need to do:

• Once you are enrolled, you must upload a suitable photo for your FAU card to the FAU’s IdM portal . You can use this card to identify yourself as a student and, for example, load money onto it for the cafeteria or snack vending machines. Once you have uploaded the photo, your FAU card will be sent to you before the start of the semester.
• If you want a discounted Germany ticket, you can order it via the VGN website.
• Once you have access to the IdM portal, you can activate and use Microsoft Office 365. To do so, follow these instructions from the RRZE under “Microsoft 365 Installation Instructions. Private devices only.”
• Familiarize yourself with the university’s portals. We have created an overview of the most important portals below.
• Connect with your fellow students. Studying is more enjoyable when you know like-minded people. We have created a WhatsApp group for all WInf freshmen.

Campo, StudOn, IdM,…

In the first few weeks, you will have to click through all kinds of university portals. So here is a brief overview of what to use for what:

• IdM Portal: At the beginning of your studies, you must upload a passport photo here, which will then be used for your FAUCard (student ID card). Otherwise, you can activate services such as Microsoft365 or apply for access to the IT tower here, but you will not need this portal very often.
• campo: This platform is used to manage your studies, initially for enrollment, and later as your point of contact for certificates (e.g., enrollment certificate), exam registration, and exam results. On campo, you will also find the course catalog, which is important for your schedule.
• StudOn: This is where you will probably spend most of your time. On StudOn, you will find courses associated with each module, through which lecturers provide their lecture slides and exercise materials. We show you how to find the respective StudOn course in our Create Timetable Tutorial.
• FAU email: All students and employees at FAU receive their own FAU email address. This usually consists of your first name and surname. To set up your address, go to the IdM portal, select Tasks, then Set up email address, and follow the steps. You can then access your emails via the web or an email client such as Outlook or Thunderbird.
• UnivIS: Although still listed on the university website as an important portal, it has long been accessible only via FAU Wi-Fi or VPN. Furthermore, it is no longer up to date and has been completely replaced by Campo.
• Slots: This tool is useful for creating timetables and works like a calendar. Unfortunately, since UnivIS was shut down, the module search function no longer works, but you can still add appointments manually. Alternatively, you can of course use any other type of calendar.

You can find more information in our FAQ.

Schedule for the first week

The first week of your studies is dominated by FSI events and the WIN project week. Here you will get to know your fellow students and take your first steps into academic work. You will also receive important information about your studies.

On October 13. the official welcome event for first-semester students will take place at WISO. You can find all the information about the program here (tba).

• 8:00 – 8:45 Welcome to the bachelor’s programs in German (Lange Gasse 20, lecture halls H4 and H1)
• 9:15 – 10:00 Welcome to the Bachelor’s programs in English (Lange Gasse 20, Lecture Halls H5 and H6)
• 9:00 – 9:45 Introductory event on business informatics (Lange Gasse 20, Lecture Hall H1)
• 10:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. Information fair with WiSo institutions and initiatives as well as corporate partners from the region (Lange Gasse 20)
• From 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. City tours “WiSo City Tour” (start: Lange Gasse 20, courtyard)
• 1:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. Get-together with pretzels and drinks (Lange Gasse 20, courtyard)
• From 9 p.m. Party to mark the start of the semester in Nürnberg (Mach1 Nuremberg)
• From 10 p.m. Party to mark the start of the semester in Erlangen (E-Werk Erlangen)

If you feel like it, you can go to the FAU’s welcome event for first-year students at the Heinrich-Lades-Halle in Erlangen between 6:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m.

On the 14th there are no events.

The WIN project week simulation game will also take place from October 15 to October 17. Attendance is mandatory. You can register here. There are several country groups, which are further divided into teams. It does not matter which country and team you register for. This is only for the purpose of dividing participants into groups. You are also welcome to read our module description for the project week.

Here you can find the exact schedule for the WIN-Projektwoche.

Create a timetable

You can find your study plan here. This means that in the first semester you will take Algorithms and Data Structures for Medical Technology (AuD-MT), Business and Entrepreneurship (UuU), Business Information Systems Engineering (BISE), Data Science: Machine Learning & Data-driven Business (ML&DDB), and the WIN Project Week. You can find the dates of the individual events on the websites of the chairs and on Campo. We have created a tutorial for creating your timetable in Campo.

IMPORTANT: Since there is often confusion, especially with UuU, you should note that Campo is unfortunately not an optimal system and often contains errors. Therefore, it is best to always check the websites of the departments for dates for your modules or StudOn, where a schedule is usually uploaded for the courses. In case of doubt, these are more up-to-date than Campo.

How do I register for modules?

There is no “registration” for a module per se. You can usually just go to lectures at any time. What many people understand by registration is joining the StudOn course. There you will find the materials for the module. You can find the appropriate link for a course via Campo as shown in the tutorial or directly in the search function in StudOn itself.

You usually have to register for exercises. You will receive information about this in the first lecture. Registration for exercises is normally done via StudOn, where you enter your preferences for dates and the system tries to assign the best possible ones to everyone. However, you are not usually bound to the date, so you can also attend others. Important: In the Companies and Entrepreneurs module, attendance is mandatory for the exercise assigned to you. You can only swap with someone else in consultation with your exercise leader.

How do exams work?

Of course, your knowledge will also be tested at university. This usually takes the form of an exam at the end of the semester.

Before you can take exams at the university, you must first register for them. There is a period during which you can register via campo. This is usually at the beginning of December and lasts for about two weeks (you can find the exact dates here). Don’t miss it! We will also remind you again via Instagram and Discord.

It is important to note that you must also register for presentations, term papers, and oral exams so that your grade can be recorded. This applies to almost all modules in the first semester.

However, you can also withdraw from exams you have registered for. This is usually possible up to three working days in advance.

What does GOP mean?

The basic and orientation examination is not a single examination, but rather consists of several examinations that students take during the first two semesters (at the latest in the third). The GOP is intended to provide students with reliable feedback at an early stage regarding their suitability for their chosen degree program.

GOP exams may only be retaken once if they are failed. Anyone who fails a GOP exam on their second attempt has definitively failed and may no longer study the subject in question, even at other universities.

Computer Science Revision Course

One of the subjects that will challenge you in your first semester is Algorithms and Data Structures (for Medical Technicians) (AuD-MT). This subject is the biggest hurdle for many bachelor’s students in their first semester, so we recommend (especially for programming novices) taking the Computer Science Review Course, which is offered as an online course. You can register for it here.

We will also be offering a crash course in Java after the semester starts. The dates will be set after consultation in the WhatsApp group.

Parking at WiSo

To use the WiSo underground car park, you must submit an application. The usage fee of €50 is payable once per semester to WiSo. You can find the application form here. Please also note the opening hours of the underground car park!

What do I need for end devices?

The question often arises as to whether you need a tablet, laptop, or both. Owning a laptop is definitely not a bad idea, as you will also be doing programming. However, it does not need to be very powerful. Alternatively, you can always use the PCs at the university.

Many people buy a tablet, which we personally think is a good idea, as it makes it easy to take notes, but here too, it doesn’t have to be the most expensive and powerful model. There are also students who manage perfectly well without a tablet.

As students, we get better deals in many shops. Take a look at the block below for more information.

Unidays and student offers

As a student, you have many advantages. Many shops offer discounts and other benefits for students. Here are a few advantages that we think are cool:

• At Unidays, you can get Apple products in particular cheaper than usual. Often, the Apple Pencil is included free of charge when you buy an iPad there.
• CampusPoint has good offers for Lenovo and Dell notebooks.
• Amazon gives students 6 months of Prime for free, followed by a reduced price
• YouTube Premium, Spotify, and other platforms offer cheaper subscriptions for us.
• For those interested in technology: As a student, you get all JetBrains programs and GitHub Copilot Pro free of charge for the duration of your studies.
• For the artistically gifted: You can get all Adobe Creative Cloud products at a greatly reduced price for one year with a student subscription. After that, it becomes more expensive, but it is still considerably cheaper than normal.