International Facility Management

Projects with impact

What makes studying at Hanze UAS unique is that you will work on projects for real clients and contribute to concrete solutions for current issues impacting society. Below, you can find some examples of projects our students engage in.

About this programme

Every person needs a pleasant, safe and well-equipped environment to live, work and relax in. At home you can create your own living environment, perfectly catered to your own needs. Most people, however, spend a great deal of their time in public spaces or buildings with other people: at work, at school, or at the local sports club. It’s a Facility Management Professional's job to organise good facilities in these places. In this programme you will learn all aspects of becoming a good facility manager. What are places where you could work? Think of an office complex, a campus, a holiday resort, a football stadium, a hospital, a conference centre, a festival site or an industrial estate.

International Facility Management (IFM) is a business management programme centred around people’s perception and experience of organisations and public spaces. We generally work with, and in professional practice provide our students with, real-world learning opportunities. You are taught by professionals in the field, go on field trips (for example to the hospital) and carry out real-life projects. Some of these projects will take place in our living labs, where you will work with other students, lecturer-researchers and entrepreneurs to develop solutions for spatial design problems. For example, first-year students are instructed to measure the indoor climate of our classrooms. The results of these measurements are actually used to improve the indoor climate, helping our lecturers and students to perform more effectively.

Course overview

Year 1

The first year is an introduction to Facility Management. You learn how to develop a sustainable and innovative work environment. Furthermore, you gain an understanding of how FM-professionals analyse and improve the effectiveness, efficiency and service level of a company. You also learn to manage, structure and improve services from a customer-oriented perspective. This includes Human Resource Management.

Year 2

In the second year, you focus on the themes Service Innovation and Spaces, and immerse yourself in projects related to hospitality, health or sustainability. You design and work out your own service by means of Design Thinking and Facility Management Canvas and expand your knowledge of space management. 

Year 3

In the third year you are going to study abroad (to do a minor) at a partner university around the world, for example in Austria, France, Finland, Spain, Turkey, the United States, Canada, Indonesia or other countries in Asia. However, if you are from outside of the Netherlands, you could also do your minor here. You also go on a five-month internship as an assistant to the manager in a company, to further increase your knowledge, skills and competencies as a developing FM professional.

Year 4

The fourth year starts with a semester called Experience, in which you focus on the experience of people in spaces. You will also start preparing for your graduation project. You will finalise your study with an assignment within an organisation of your choice. You will analyse a project and give advice or make a design.

For more information, please check our ECTS Course Catalogue.

After your studies

Pursue a master's degree

After successful completion of the International Facility Management programme, you can continue with a postgraduate study and pursue a master's degree.

Hanze UAS offers multiple master's programmes that would be a good follow-up to your bachelor's degree in Facility Management. These are the following master's degrees (NL/EN):

• Master Sociaal-Ruimtelijk Transitiemanagement (part-time / NL), Hanze UAS
• Master International Communication (full-time / EN), Hanze UAS
• Master Interdisciplinary Business Professional (part-time / NL), Hanzehogeschool Groningen
• Master in International Business and Management (full-time / EN), Hanzehogeschool Groningen
• Master of Science in Business Studies (Interdisciplinary Business Professional) (full-time / EN), Hanze UAS

Career prospects

After graduation you will be able to find a job at a management level. The most popular jobs include:

• head of facility services 
• hospitality manager 
• real estate professional 
• purchasing specialist 
• catering manager 
• events project manager 
• head of safety & ICT 

Application & enrolment

Once you have made your final choice of study, apply for the study via Studielink before 1 May. If you register before that date, you will have the so-called right of admission. This means you have the right to be admitted to the study, as long as you meet the legal admission requirements. In addition, everyone who registers before 1 May is entitled to a Study Choice Check.

If you apply after 1 May, participation in the Study Choice Check is compulsory. If you do not participate in the compulsory check, your registration may be refused. To be enrolled from the start of the academic year, you must register before 1 September at the latest.

Study Choice Check

Like you, we want you to choose a study that suits you and that you can successfully complete. That success starts with choosing the right study. To find out whether you are a match for Facility Management, we offer you the Study Choice Check. 

The programme (International) Facility Management (FM/IFM) has chosen two activities to fill in the Study Choice Check: completing an assignment (and possibly an interview) and a matching day.

1. Online assignment 

Here, you work on an assignment, explain which Facility Management related qualities you already possess and/or can still develop, what your motivation is for choosing this programme and explain how collaboration works in general. 

2. Matching morning

Together with other registered students you will go through the matching morning. You go on a speed date, do a cooperation assignment, follow a mini-lecture and get more insight into the working methods within the programme. At the end of the morning, you will take a test by yourself. This test will result in a red, orange or green advice. For orange or red, you can request an appointment with a student coach. 

Start of study

The study starts in September. There are no opportunities to start this programme in February.