Dies Academicus 2026: Awards for study and teaching

Alumni Association honours outstanding students

Rolf Lynen, First Chairman of the Alumni Association of Weihenstephan-Triesdorf University of Applied Sciences e. V., opened the student honours ceremony with a welcome address.

The award for the top graduate from the Triesdorf campus went to Tessa-Marie Ertel. In her final dissertation for the Bachelor’s degree programme in Agriculture at Triesdorf, the graduate investigated the early identification of Fleckvieh cows’ suitability for deliberately extended intercalving periods. The alumna demonstrated her “strong practical sense” in lectures, where she “always sought targeted dialogue” and “questioned the practical applicability of theoretical content”, according to Prof. Dr Prisca Kremer-Rücker in her video tribute to Tessa-Marie Ertel.

Stephanie Louise Jüttner, from the Master’s programme in Food Quality, was honoured as the top graduate of the Weihenstephan Campus. In her Master’s thesis, the graduate developed a company-specific sustainability strategy for roller-dried foods. Prof. Dr. Marion Stoffels-Schmid emphasised in her tribute that beyond her academic achievements, Stephanie Louise Jüttner played an active role in the university community and, amongst other things, served as programme representative for the Food Quality programme for three semesters.

City of Freising Prize

Carlota Frank, from the Landscape Architecture programme specialising in landscape planning, received the City of Freising Prize – presented by Freising’s new Mayor, Monika Schwind – for her final-year project on heavy rainfall analysis on the site above the demonstration garden in Freising. In her work, the graduate combines analytical thinking, technical expertise and creative planning, thereby “making a valuable contribution to addressing the challenges of climate change at a local level”, said Monika Schwind in her laudatory speech.

DAAD Prize

Zaki Mahfoud from Ireland was awarded the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) Prize with distinction. In his Master’s thesis for his degree in Agricultural Management, Zaki Mahfoud addresses key challenges in biodiversity monitoring. In his laudatory speech, Prof. Dr Florian Haselbeck emphasised that the prize winner’s thesis was not a traditional Master’s thesis, but rather a scientific manuscript that is about to be submitted to an international peer-reviewed journal. 

‘Good Teaching’ for Katrin Ketterer

The students awarded the prize for good teaching to Katrin Ketterer from the Department of Forestry. Not only does she pass on her motivation and enthusiasm to her students, but through interactive teaching and a variety of teaching methods, she also ensures that students can integrate the knowledge they have learnt into their everyday working lives. Her constant commitment to modernising teaching formats and providing students with the best possible facilities for practical work is complemented by her role as a representative of academic staff on the Department Council and as the Department’s Women’s Officer. Through her personality, Katrin Ketterer creates a trusting atmosphere in which students’ questions, uncertainties and individual concerns can be openly addressed.

Those interested can find a report on the Dies Academicus 2026 in this news article. Further information on the other award winners can be found in the press release on the HSWT’s Research Honours and Sustainability Awards. Further details on the conferral of the title of Honorary Senator on Cornelia Horsch can be found in this press release.

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