Claudia Maier is taking over the interim operational management of the Master's degree programme in International Business Relations at FH Burgenland.
She completed this degree programme herself two years ago. Now she is standing in for Nina Trinkl, head of the degree programme, during her maternity leave.
Claudia Maier from Vorarlberg moved to Vienna at the age of 18 to study law. "However, the culture shock was too much and I returned home after a year," she says. There she started her career at T-Mobile and gained her first experience in marketing. A bachelor's degree in Marketing & Sales at the FH Vienna followed, and she worked for A1 and then Microsoft. After the birth of her son, she began studying for a Master's degree in International Business Relations at the Burgenland University of Applied Sciences.
Courses on research methods and working on her Master's thesis awakened Claudia Maier's passion for research. "I applied for a position at Forschung Burgenland and am responsible for social science issues at the Centre for Energy Transition." The committed feminist has also repeatedly incorporated gender equality issues into her work as a researcher. And with great success. In June of this year, Forschung Burgenland was honoured with the "equalitA" award for equal opportunities and professional equality.
Maier has been teaching research methods and supervising Bachelor's and Master's theses in the Department of Business since 2021. She had to think twice about the offer to manage her former degree programme on an interim basis, because: "I love my job in research, but I'm really looking forward to the new role."
Above all, she is looking forward to the more intensive contact with the students. "I can use my own example to show what opportunities there are for graduates." Claudia Maier would also like to get involved in research in the Department of Business and is looking forward to getting to know the University of Applied Sciences from a different perspective.
Why she is happy to recommend her degree programme is as clear as day. "The family atmosphere at UAS Burgenland is unrivalled. You have a really close relationship with the lecturers and the programme director as well as with your fellow students." The programme also pays off in terms of content.