Methodology and case study for investigating curricula of study programs in regard to teaching industry 4.0

The industrial world is currently undergoing changes due to increasing digitalization and computerization in companies (Industry 4.0). Existing control and management components and systems located within the upper layers of an enterprise's structure are connected to the shop floor. With the current paradigm shift in manufacturing, the need for more collaboration between personnel with different fields of expertise arises. This means that members of a multitude of professions need to work and communicate with each other. These developments in the industry also have an influence on current education curricula at schools and universities. Interdisciplinary knowledge across different curricula is required to work in an Industry 4.0 environment. This paper presents a general methodology for the evaluation of academic curricula of a university with regard to Industry 4.0 related topics. Based on this methodology, a case study was carried out, examining study programs of the Faculty of Technology at the University of Applied Sciences Emden/Leer. As a result of the case study, we present recommendations to increase the coverage of Industry 4.0 relevant topics in the current academic curriculum of the university.