KE@Work: information for students
Are you a student of the bachelor's programme in Data Science and Artificial Intelligence? Are you doing well in your first year and looking for an extra challenge on top of the regular curriculum? Our honours track KE@Work (Knowledge Engineering at Work) gives you the opportunity to take what you learn during your studies and apply it directly in a real-world setting at a company or organisation. This way, you gain valuable academic and professional experience.
Why join KE@Work?
Gain relevant work experience before even graduating
Get to know the local job market for Data Science and AI-related positions
Instead of the regular group projects in year 2 and 3 of the bachelor's, you will work at a KE@Work partner organisation for two days a week. You will also write your bachelor thesis on a subject that is relevant to your KE@Work organisation. Altogether, you will spend 50% of your time in class and 50% of your time at the partner organisation. You will earn a fixed allowance in return for your work. In addition, KE@Work participation covers 36 ECTS credits within the regular bachelor's programme.
KE@Work partner company Mediaan created this video to share their experiences with KE@Work.
The video also features a number of KE@Work students who share their insights: "You really get to combine and implement the things your learn at university and see them in practice."
Selection of projects
Agata Oskroba
KE@work was a very unique and rewarding experience. At Q-Park, I focused on translating business questions into actionable insights using real data. I had the opportunity to work on meaningful tasks, develop new skills, and learn from an experienced team. It improved my professional confidence and practical understanding of data.
Emma Szilagyi
My experience at KE@Work was both exciting and incredibly valuable. I got to work on not just any project, but one whose topic I found interesting and was passionate about. The project helped me grow not just professionally, but also personally. I gained so much knowledge by having experienced colleagues around me, while still having the freedom to experiment by myself.
I was left very impressed by the fact that my work had a real impact on other people’s lives and that I was trusted to deliver something meaningful to the team. It confirmed that I really enjoy the field I chose to study and want to keep pursuing it. I am very grateful that I had this opportunity and that I got to build a strong foundation for my future career.
How do I join KE@Work?
KE@Work is an honours programme where you can find an extra challenge within your studies at the Department of Advanced Computing Sciences. Since it's an extra challenge that requires a time investment of approximately one extra day per week, we want to make sure that you perform sufficiently well in your studies to handle the additional hours. Students with an average grade of at least 7.5 and no resits can apply for KE@Work at the end of the first semester of the first year. The deadline is announced through Canvas.
There are a number of steps - including interviews and workshops - between the moment you apply for KE@Work and the moment you first set foot in your new office. You can find an overview of the process below.
KE@Work: from application to start of the programme
KE@Work interviews
We want to get to know you and you surely have questions for us. Therefore, we invite you to a 10-minute interview with with the KE@Work team. Based on your grades and the results of the interview, we will let you know whether you can join the next part of the KE@Work track.
KE@Workshops
To prepare you for KE@Work, we offer a sequence of four mandatory workshops of two hours each:
- Introduction
The first workshop is all about getting to know each other! We will also go through all the ins and outs about KE@Work with you once again. -
- CV Workshop
What does a good resume look like? What should you mention and what should you leave out? What to do with a gap? In this workshop, we will discuss these questions and many more. Equipped with this knowledge you then fill in your KE@Work CV. We will use these CVs to inform KE@Work partner organisations.
- CV Workshop
- Professional Business Communication workshop
Whether you have previous job experience or KE@Work will be your first, there is always something new to be learned about business communication. In this workshop, we discuss the various business cultures you may encounter as a KE@Work student. We will also teach you about the correct use of your professional email and calendar.
- Job interview workshop
Interviews are your moment to shine. Do you really have to? What are the two kinds of interviewers you might encounter? What sort of questions are asked? How do you prepare for an interview? And what should you absolutely not do? In this workshop, we will get you up to speed for the KE@Work speed dates.
You will receive a calendar invitation to each workshop via your UM-mail.
Matching: Pitch Event
The Pitch Event is the first moment you get to meet the KE@Work partner organisations.
Prior to the event, you will have received the projects available at our partner companies. Study them well. Which projects appeal to you? What kind of organisation offers it, and who is the project leader? With whom do you want to talk during the event? You should have an idea, but the participating organisations should too: they have received your CV and know beforehand in whom they are most interested.
First, the organisations give a 5-10 minute pitch. Second, there is an opportunity to talk to the representatives of the organisations over informal drinks. After the Pitch Event, you have a few days to think about which projects are the most interesting to you. Once you have shared your ranked preferences for the available projects with us, we will plan the speed dates at the KE@Work Fair (this fair is new per academic year 2026-2027).
Matching: KE@Work fair
Depending on the number of students and participating organisations, the fair will last one or two full days. During the fair, you will visit your preferred organisations. You will have 10-minute speed-dating sessions to introduce yourself and ask questions about the organisation or the planned project.
After the fair, you will list all the projects you would like to work on. The organisations will do the same for the students they wish to have on their projects. A matching algorithm will then ensure we start with the optimal student-project pairings.
Once the matching is done, we will proceed with signing the contracts.
Start KE@Work
Now the real work begins. One week before classes start, we will ask you to already visit your KE@Work organisation for a day. This gives you the opportunity to familiarise yourself with your new environment without any distractions. Once the regular curriculum starts, you will work full days on Wednesday and Thursday during your second year.
In your second year of the internship, you continue your internship during the elective semester, which complicates your first semester of that year a bit. We have agreed with your internship organisation that you would spend two days every week at work. This will limit the choices you can make in terms of elective courses. You will have to coordinate this yourself.
In the second semester of your second year, we arrange your educational schedule so that Tuesdays and Wednesdays are free for work.
Get in touch
If you have further questions or are looking to participate in KE@Work, feel free to reach out via kework@maastrichtuniversity.nl
Anouk Quaden
KE@Work coordinator
Anouk runs KE@Work on a day-to-day basis. She's your first point of contact for all matters relating to KE@Work.
Prof. dr. Frank Thuijsman
KE@Work initiator
Although officially retired, Frank remains actively engaged and continues to support the programme he cares deeply about. Frank founded KE@Work in 2014.
Kurt Driessens
KE@Work co-coordinator
Kurt joined the KE@Work team as co-coordinator in 2023. Previously, Kurt's roles included programme director and head of the programme committee.
Further reading
Curious? Do read on! For more information, you can always send an e-mail to kework@maastrichtuniversity.nl. You can also attend the KE@Work information session.