In the wake of Industry 4.0, new technical, methodological, and soft skills are gaining in importance – but are these skills being taught? On behalf of the VDMA’s IMPULS foundation, the Institute for Social Research and the International Labor Market Research Team (FIA) compiled the ‘ Engineers for Industry 4.0 ’ study to examine this. The study compared a ‘target profile’ of industry with the ‘actual state’ at universities, proposing recommendations for action based on this comparison. The findings of the study are mixed: They point to “a need for comprehensive action” in terms of training engineers for Industry 4.0, but also show that important foundations have already been laid and key developments are already in progress in companies and universities.

The accompanying ‘ online skills check for Industry 4.0 ’ is to serve as a guide, enabling companies, employees, and students to compare their skills and qualifications with Industry 4.0-related job profiles.