New students formally enrolled

The Rector's invitation was accepted not only by many first-year students and their families, but also by numerous personalities from society and representatives of partner companies and organizations as well as members of the academic community.

In his welcoming speech, the Rector pointed out that the university has excellent national and international networks. "Like every university, ours is a university in a constant state of change," he said. He continued: "We are adapting - to social, technical and economic developments. The student body has changed, demographic developments, the Europeanization and globalization of the academic landscape constantly present us with new challenges, as does our mission to be a regional driving force in knowledge and technology transfer. We do this on the basis of a solid foundation of a broad spectrum of subjects, ranging from engineering to natural sciences, economics and social sciences, with a focus on future topics. This not only opens up the path to a sound academic education for our students, but also to unique experiences abroad or collaboration in research. Keep all this in mind when I encourage you to discover what it means to be a member of a university: not a consumer of education, but an active, co-creative participant."

The Rector also addressed fundamental convictions such as openness to the world and tolerance towards other cultures. Almost 15 percent of first-year students come from abroad. In order to survive as a university in teaching, research and development, an environment that guarantees an international orientation is indispensable. The hostess, Pastor Margrit Mickel, also warmly welcomed the students and wished them all the best for their studies. Representing the Lord Mayor of Zittau, Mayor Philipp Fay addressed the new students in both university towns. He encouraged them to take advantage of the numerous cultural opportunities offered by the region and the entire border triangle in addition to their studies and to get involved in the cultural life of their university towns with high-profile student projects. As a representative of the university's student body, Stefanie Posselt from the Master's degree course in Mechanical Engineering welcomed the new students. She encouraged the freshmen to get involved in the student councils of their faculties or in the university's student council and to take advantage of the cultural and sporting activities on offer at the university.

This year's keynote speaker was Thomas Scholz, Managing Partner of Arno Hentschel GmbH Oderwitz. Thomas Scholz is a graduate of the Industrial Engineering and Management course at our university and spoke about the various stages of his professional development in his speech. He explained how the various stays abroad, but also the different professional stations have shaped him. The extensive experience he was able to gain is now benefiting him in his current job in his home region of Upper Lusatia. In 2015, he took over Arno Hentschel GmbH, a metalworking company in Oderwitz, which was urgently looking for a successor and which he is now developing further.

A special highlight of the matriculation ceremony was the award for special academic and social commitment of foreign students in 2019. Lucie Kahounová comes from the Czech Republic, is studying for a Bachelor's degree in Molecular Biotechnology and can demonstrate very good performance. In addition, she shows extensive social commitment that goes far beyond the usual as part of her voluntary work with the Czech Red Cross. She also contributes to a very good working atmosphere in the seminar group as part of her own studies through her active demeanor and supports all those students who find it difficult to follow up on the course and prepare for exams. Ms. Kahounová has just completed her internship semester at Euroimmun AG and her above-average commitment was also acknowledged from this side. The prize, donated by the Förderverein der Hochschule Zittau/Görlitz e. V., is associated with a financial contribution of 500 euros.

Another highlight was the presentation of the certificates to the Deutschlandstipendium scholarship holders and their sponsors by the Rector, Prof. Friedrich Albrecht. The Deutschlandstipendium supports young people on their individual educational and career path and at the same time enables them to continue their already proven diverse social commitment. Half of the scholarship of 300 euros per month is paid by the federal government and the other half by a sponsor.