Jazz music, evening dress, atmospheric lighting - the Fachhochschule Dortmund honored its best graduates in front of the melting furnace in the steel hall of the German Occupational Safety and Health Exhibition (DASA). The annual academic ceremony is the highlight of the university year.
"You are the best graduates of your faculty and you can be really proud of that," said Celine Carstensen-Opitz, Chairwoman of the Fachhochschule Dortmund's sponsoring society and member of the Board of Management of VOLKSWOHL BUND Versicherung. In their final theses, the students dealt with production methods for façade elements, automated quality assessment of bicycle routes, the improvement of electric drives and the social debate on drug consumption rooms, among other things. "Each and every one of you has contributed to making the world a better place - with a new idea, with new insights," praised Prof. Dr. Tamara Appel, Rector of Fachhochschule Dortmund. "My respect goes out to all of you. Please accept this appreciation and pass it on."
Interviews with the award winners
For the best Bachelor's and Master's theses in each Faculty of Computer Science, the Fördergesellschaft honored: Caroline Iser (Faculty of Applied Social Studies), Padra Namvar (Business Studies), Christopher Nieder (Computer Science), Nicolas Plancq (Design), Eric Schulte (Electrical Engineering), Nick Schuto (Faculty of Information Technology), Marc Stiegemann (Information Technology) as well as Jan Stöcker and Martin Vagedes (Architecture). In their words of thanks, the students praised the "close connection to the professional world" at Fachhochschule Dortmund and the sense of community with both fellow students and lecturers.
The Fördergesellschaft also supports application-oriented teaching and research. Dipl.-Des. Harald Opel received the 2025 Research Award for his work at storyLab kiU. Among other things, he is responsible for the façade mappings on the Dortmunder U, which not only showcase the building in a spectacular way, but also always take a stand for tolerance and diversity. The prize for outstanding teaching went to the Faculty of Computer Science: Prof. Dr. Nadja Bauer. The students praised her ability to explain difficult concepts, particularly in the field of mathematics, in a simple and easy-to-understand way. The teaching award winners are chosen by a jury from the suggestions of the student councils. In addition to her outstanding teaching, the students also praised Prof. Bauer's commitment to the "FemInf" (Female in Computer Science) project - a network for female computer science students.
Other award winners are:
- Prize of the Fördergesellschaft for outstanding cooperative doctorate:
Dr. Jonas Sorgalla (Institute for the Digital Transformation of Application and Living Domains/IDiAL). - Sponsorship award from the Soroptimist International Club Dortmund:
Marina Reinert (Mechanical Engineering) - Cornelia-Därmann-Nowak-Prize of the Soroptimist International Club Dortmund Hellweg:
Franziska Troja (Mechanical Engineering) - Prize of the Rudolf Chaudoire Foundation:
Faculty of Electrical Engineering: Bjarne Karwik, Lars Koers, Jan Nordhausen
Faculty of Mechanical Engineering: Jan Erik Atmann, Stefan Behnk, Tobias Haget
Faculty of Information Technology: Anton Altmeyer, Konstantin Moss, Mohamad Sayad - Prize of the KARL KOLLE Foundation:
Ellen Bromkamp (Information Technology), Nick Nuxoll (Mechanical Engineering) Niklas Sommerfeldt (Electrical Engineering) and Franziska Wilp (Computer Science) - Heinrich-Frommknecht Prize:
Julia Fuchs (Business Studies) - Prize of the German Academic Exchange Service:
Ivy Ivenna Chrystabell (Computer Science)
Interviews with the award winners
