Isabella Gasnarek likes her Bachelor's degree programme in Building Technology and Building Automation ‘insanely well’. Even though she is the only woman in her semester. The self-confident student does not let this put her off. She already knows this from her school days at HTL Mödling. Here she was also in the minority as a woman in the mechanical engineering specialisation.

The fact that Isabella is interested in areas that tend to be dominated by men doesn't bother her. ‘The older generation often underestimates me. I'm sometimes asked whether I really think I can do it. But nowadays it should actually be normal for women to be drawn to technical fields’ ,she says. ’My fellow students think it's cool, anyway. I like it too, because I just find blokes less complicated.’ Her teacher at the HTL recognised that the student had the right know-how. He informed her about the special degree programme at the UAS.

Now the Mödling native is scoring points with her previous knowledge, for example in maths. As she was able to get credit for some courses, Isabella enjoys more free time than some of her fellow students. To save herself the daily commute from Mödling to Pinkafeld, she has moved into student accommodation and has already settled in well. She is certainly impressed by the good food in the canteen and the family atmosphere. ‘It's all smaller than in Mödling, but that makes it very cosy.’

To avoid boredom in her free time, she uses the WhatsApp group called ‘Stuck in Pinkafeld’ together with students. ‘We organise various meetings to pass the time together. We usually end up at the Zapfel pub’ , she smiles. The FH scores most highly with her thanks to its great organisation. The dates are fixed right at the beginning of the semester. According to Isabella, the organisation of the teaching units is also ideal.

For Isabella's fellow student Dominic Tockner, the first semester has also been exciting, thrilling and very varied so far. He described his first impressions in the blog post ‘They come, they start and now they study’ at the beginning of his studies. Now he is certain: ‘I have no regrets about choosing Building Technology and Building Automation. The degree programme offers the variety I was looking for.’

Dominic really appreciates the helpfulness and team spirit of his fellow students. The young student from Tulln already experienced some highlights in his first semester: ‘I had several special moments. On the one hand, there were the new friendships I made and, on the other, the exciting courses and tutorials in the individual subjects. I'm particularly proud of the exam I've already taken in academic writing.’ He goes on to say that all the lecturers in the lectures are very competent, friendly and well organised. So far, he has not had any doubts about his choice of degree programme.

‘It feels like I've never done anything else. Everything has been very exciting so far,’ says Katharina Landl enthusiastically about her first semester on the Bachelor's degree programme in International Business Relations. She is extremely happy with her choice of degree programme, because:

Chiara Feher is in her first semester on the Bachelor's degree programme in Social Work. When asked how the first semester was for her, she answers enthusiastically: ‘Really cool. I was a bit nervous at first, but the many nice people I met quickly confirmed that I had made the right decision in choosing this degree programme.’ The motivated student from Münchendorf quickly settled in and the personal environment appeals to her. She also finds it very positive that the students are divided into smaller groups in the lectures and tutorials. ‘You never get lost in discussions and everyone has the confidence to ask questions.’

She only has good things to say about her fellow students: