"Young professionals with a degree and initial work experience have the best opportunities today. No generation before has been so courted by Business Studies. It is the trump card of demography in a country that is gradually running out of skilled workers. German companies are currently short of around 28,800 workers in the STEM subjects of mathematics, information technology, natural sciences and technology by 2031."
(Published by Statista Research Department(Opens in a new tab) , 04.12.2020)
Germany is the third largest energy market in the western world. It is a dynamic market that offers excellent career opportunities and promotion prospects.
As the energy system is being converted from conventional to renewable energies, the opportunities for graduates in electrical engineering and the energy industry have increased even further. Many projects such as e-mobility or storage concepts such as power-to-gas are opening up qualifications in other branches of industry, such as the automotive sector, information and telecommunications industry or the chemical industry.
The "Generation Y", who were teenagers around the year 2000, are particularly well equipped to meet these requirements. Well educated, they are characterized by a technology-oriented lifestyle. This is the first generation that has largely grown up in an environment of Internet and mobile communication.
The direction in which the energy market is developing
More than 1,000 energy supply companies in Germany, new energy service providers and numerous consulting firms and suppliers are committed to market liberalization and the energy transition.
There are many different companies that are active market players in the energy industry:
- Grid companies and operating companies: In the area of the grid expansion plan alone, the federal government is planning to invest billions in the future, and industrial engineers* are needed here in the areas of new construction, maintenance, grid connection and, above all, smart grids and intelligent metering systems, regulation managers*, feed-in managers* (RE plants), balancing managers* with a focus on grid management.
- Energy suppliers - Employees in the areas of energy sales, energy purchasing, product management and energy balancing are in demand here.
- Energy producers - The generation plants are diverse, ranging from small decentralized plants such as PV systems and heat pumps to large central plants such as off-shore wind farms or CHP plants. The operation/mode of operation of the plant also differs greatly, so that there is a very broad field of activity here.
- Service providers such as billing companies, but also software manufacturers such as SAP SE, Schleupen GmbH, Wilken GmbH, powercloud GmbH and arvarto GmbH have been looking for employees with energy industry expertise for years.
- Industry and commerce - In this sector, the use and utilization of energy is a permanent topic, which ranges from the economic to the ecological view to the consideration of availability for tomorrow as well as for the next few years.
Prospects for Fachhochschule Dortmund graduates
Depending on their inclinations and interests, Fachhochschule Dortmund graduates have many different companies to choose from. The diversity of companies and their framework conditions is immense. However, one necessity unites them all:
Companies need more employees with in-depth knowledge of the energy industry now and in the future.
The professions include:
- Sales & Account Management
- Grid access / grid utilization
- Portfolio management
- Balancing management
- Billing services
- Energy data management (renewable/ decentralized energy)
- Regulation management
- Product development
- metering
- Business process management
- Corporate development
- Consultant (in-house or with consulting companies)
- Feed-in management
- Information security
- business development
