Some arrived a few weeks ago, others only a few days before the start of this new winter semester. During the first week of the semester, the new MBA candidates as well as 160 Master students from other study programs met for the Goldstadtwalk, a city tour, during which they received lots of information and practical tips about their new "home town".
Pforzheim is situated in Baden-Württemberg, one of the leading economic regions in Europe, which is characterized by a strong industry and a high export ratio. Besides many “global players” and well-known companies such as Daimler, Bosch or SAP, the backbone of the state are its medium-sized enterprises, many of which are world market leaders in their respective product fields.
Pforzheim is the northern gateway to the Black Forest which is one of the biggest and best-known holiday regions in Germany, offering a multitude of outdoor sports and culture. Since 250 years and still today the city is famous as the center for the German jewelry and watch making industry, which earned it the name “Goldstadt” (Gold Town).
The guided city tour gave the students also an idea of the city´s history: founded by the Romans in the first century a.d. and residence of the Markgraves of Baden in the Middle Ages, Pforzheim got almost completely destroyed in World War II so that the city today is strongly influenced by its reconstruction of the 50s and 60s.
The townhall with its citizen center, where all new students have to register, the tourist information, coffee shops, pubs, restaurants, clubs, the city theatre and many other things were shown to the students so that they have everything at hand to make the next two years in the MBA program  unforgettable ones.

Photos: MBA, HSPF
Text: MBA