Implementing an ECTS-barometer for the optimization of student workload distribution, as demonstrated in an example from the Master degree programme Mechatronics/Robotics

This paper introduces a method for optimizing students' workload by means of a so called ECTS-barometer. This barometer was developed on the basis of the European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System in order to capture learning activities of students on a weekly basis. The main principles of this barometer are presented on an example in the Master degree programme Mechatronics/Robotics at the University of Applied Sciences Technikum Wien in Vienna, Austria. This paper describes how the barometer is used and how it can lead to improvement in terms of allocating assignments as well as course units as to avoid overloads.