The popular tradition of the Fachhochschule Dortmund took place again this year on the Sonnenstraße campus - for the first time, the Graduate Center's summer party was also part of it!
On 4 July, host Kerstin von der Linden welcomed employees, students, relatives and residents to this year's summer party in glorious weather. The event started punctually at 3:30 pm with the Graduate Center of Fachhochschule Dortmund, followed by a varied supporting program with activities for young and old. At 5:30 pm, the poster exhibition "Studying - and then? Alumni report" was opened, in which former students reported on their career paths. Afterwards, the jazz trio Klang Salon provided atmospheric musical accompaniment, and Rector Prof. Dr. Tamara Appel then addressed the guests. The musical highlight of the evening then followed from 20:00, with plenty of dancing and a party atmosphere.
As part of the celebration, all new doctoral candidates and the four doctoral candidates who were accepted into the doctoral funding program in 2024 were officially welcomed to the University of Applied Sciences. This also included the introduction of the newly elected doctoral student representatives: Robert Kremer, Kathrin Breitenbach, Benjamin Bracke and Sairah Bostanci will be the contact persons and point of contact for doctoral students for the next two years. The doctoral student representatives set strategic impulses in the Advisory Board of the doctoral program, are part of the jury for doctoral funding and strengthen the interdisciplinary networking of doctoral students.
The university then honored the successfully completed doctorates of the past year. The new graduates shared their experiences in short interviews and received great applause for their research successes and the now completed milestone in their academic careers.
Another highlight was the announcement of the winner of this year's doctoral prize. The winner, Dr. Jonas Sorgalla, stood stunned as he was called to the stage and the celebratory applause began.
Naturally, the Graduate Center was represented with its own information stand. Counseling was provided on site and there was also a reading corner with various dissertations to browse through. Our doctoral students were also able to take part in the "If my research work was an ice cream, what flavor would it be?" competition. They were able to write their answers on round pieces of paper, which were then stuck over a handmade ice cream cone - thus creating the "research ice cream". Their experiences provided insights into the various facets of research work. Of course, participation was suitably rewarded with a water ice cream.
The cooperative doctorate at Fachhochschule Dortmund in collaboration with the Graduate Center NRW is a valuable and intellectually stimulating experience that is enriched and supported by the Graduate Center. The promotion of academic networking and scientific exchange is of great importance in this context and will continue to be brought to the fore by events such as the summer party. This year's integration of the Graduate Center's summer party has significantly broadened the spectrum of interaction between young researchers. As research is increasingly becoming an interdisciplinary affair, collaboration and broadening perspectives are highly relevant. Productive impulses and academic stimuli were once again the main focus this year.