Science
Exploring the future
As a research assistant at Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences, you can make a personal contribution to the transformation of the economy and society in your field of expertise through your projects. We offer a great deal of creative freedom, helpful colleagues, and close contact with professors and staff at HKA. In the dynamic environment of the university, you can also achieve tangible success in your own development.
“When I see the sparkle in their eyes, I know why I’m here.”
Alexander Rothhaas (51) is a research assistant at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Information Technology. As an engineer, he oversees the Laboratory Control Engineering. He ensures that everything runs smoothly: from the hardware to student support. After twenty years as a software developer in the automotive industry, he moved to Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences a few years ago. Today, he not only imparts technical knowledge there, but above all a passion for programming and the sense of responsibility that goes with it.
What is your role at the university?
I keep the Control Engineering Laboratory running, maintain the hardware, service the models and supervise the students during their experiments. When they come into the laboratory, they work with a real sorting system, which they control using the TIA Portal programming environment. You can see straight away whether something is working. I also supervise Bachelor’s, Master’s and project theses. My role as a laboratory engineer is to ensure that everything here runs smoothly: both technically and in terms of people.
You previously worked in the automotive industry for over twenty years. What have you taken away from that time?
I programmed fire brigade turntable ladders, which is all about functional safety. That responsibility still shapes me today. The software is the glue that holds the mechanics, hydraulics, drive technology and so on together. Anyone who programmes needs to understand everything and think defensively: it’s better for nothing to happen at all than for something unforeseen to occur. A standstill is the safe state. I try to convey this responsible attitude to the students as well.
What do you particularly value about your work at the university?
Quite clearly: working with the students. I’m right at the cutting edge, keeping up with which topics and technologies are currently in the spotlight and how young people think. I organise events like Girls’ Day, for example, or teenagers from Oman or Peru come to the lab. I do little programming exercises with them. When their eyes start to light up because something works, it warms my heart. I also work in a very collegial environment. There’s an open atmosphere here, whether with professors, the workshop staff or PhD students. If someone has an idea, we sit down together. Within five minutes we’re on first-name terms and developing something new together.
What do the students learn from you – and what do you learn from them?
I bring my professional experience to the table so that theory and practice come together. You can learn how to bake a cake in theory. But it’s only when you step into the kitchen yourself that you realise what really matters. My aim is for the students to have fun and develop enthusiasm. And I learn a lot from them: about different cultures, new perspectives and social openness. Here at the university, I encounter topics that were rarely discussed in industry. That broadens my horizons.
And when you go home at the end of a successful working day: what remains?
Euphoria. When the students have understood or achieved something and are happy, I’m happy with them.
