“At our university, many doctoral supervisors at all faculties take on their task with a great deal of commitment and passion. One of the central aims of today's award ceremony is to draw attention to this achievement,” said the Vice President for International Affairs, Academic Qualification, and Diversity, Dr. Mandy Boehnke, at the award ceremony at the Campus Space of Sparkasse Bremen. Mandy Boehnke also thanked the University of Bremen Alumni Network association, which sponsored the award.

Drive and Diversity Literacy

In the laudatory speech for Professor Nicole Megow – the award winner from the field of natural sciences and engineering – her former doctoral student Dr. Lukas Nölke commented: “Some of the qualities I most admire in Nicole Megow are her drive and her infectious enthusiasm for discrete mathematics. Her diversity literacy – the ability to act in an appreciative, respectful, and unprejudiced manner – is another skill that sets her apart and that she always exemplifies. It is rare to encounter a mentor who is so competent in her field as well as so empathetic and encouraging on a human level. Since 2016, Nicole Megow has been researching and teaching at the University of Bremen. The professor holds the chair for Combinatorial Optimization in the Faculty of Mathematics and Computer Science at the University of Bremen. She is also a member of the Bremen research clusters Minds, Media, Machines and Dynamics in Logistics.

“An Excellent Career Coach”

The award in the field of humanities and social sciences went to Kerstin Martens. She has been an assistant professor since 2007 and a professor for International Relations and World Society at the University of Bremen since 2009. She is a board member of the current “Global Development Dynamics of Social Policy” Collaborative Research Center. “Kerstin Martens excels at teaching research organization and research design to her students and research assistants. Additionally, she is an excellent career coach. She has a good perception of where our research is applicable and which audience we can best reach with our topics,” says her former doctoral student Dr. Fabian Besche-Truthe.

The Alumni Network of the University of Bremen donated the prize money of 2,000 euros per person. It is earmarked exclusively for projects to support doctoral students. “Usually, awards are given for the work of an individual. Here it is different. Here, we honor those whose work creates the conditions for outstanding achievements by individuals. This is exactly the reason why we, as an alumni association, are committed to this award,” said Dr. Tim Nesemann, chairperson of the University of Bremen Alumni Network association.

About the Award

This was the third time, the Award for Outstanding Doctoral Supervision of the University of Bremen was handed out. It is awarded to researchers, one from the field of humanities and social sciences and another from the field of natural sciences and engineering, every two years. The jury is comprised of the advisory board of the Bremen Early Career Researcher Development Center (BYRD) and one member of the prize sponsors, the Alumni Network of the University of Bremen. The nominees must receive at least two nominations in order to be featured as a winner. Young researchers who completed their PhD at the University of Bremen no longer than four years ago can submit nominations.

Further Information:

www.uni-bremen.de/betreuungspreis

Contact:

Dr. Marie Saade
BYRD (Bremen Early Career Researcher Development)
University of Bremen
Tel: +49 421 218-60327
E-Mail: marie.saadeprotect me ?!vw.uni-bremenprotect me ?!.de