040707 SE International Cooperative Management (MA) (2026S)

The seminar is aimed at Master's students who are interested in studying forms of enterprises such as cooperatives and non-profit-organisations and in the concept of the social economy in an international context.

Business forms that are not profit-oriented but member-oriented, such as cooperatives, or based on a (strategic) mission concept (non-profit organisations), are increasingly becoming more widespread, especially in an international context. The aim of the seminar is to highlight the special characteristics of these types of companies and to identify their country-specific differences and key areas of focus. In addition to the legal framework and organisational forms, the seminar will also examine their innovative concepts on current issues such as sustainability, the climate crisis, affordable housing, etc.

In order to raise students' awareness of the organisational and legal characteristics of these types of companies, the seminar starts with a general theoretical introduction to the various topics. Students then explore the in-depth questions they have chosen, with general literature on the topics being provided and participants receiving feedback from the course instructor. Finally, students will learn to give and receive constructive feedback on their colleagues' written seminar papers in the form of peer reviews (feedback loops). A final group presentation of the results and a written paper will complete the course.

The topics are designed for group work (10-15 pages each student), but can also be completed as individual work in a slightly modified form. Due to the international context of the topics, both presentation and written assignment can be composed in German or English.