New students are welcomed to the university with the enrolment ceremony. There is also an extensive programme to get to know each other.

The welcome week for new students at the HTWD started on Monday. 

Around 1,200 first-year students are starting their studies at HTW Dresden at the beginning of the semester. The first-semester students were welcomed at the beginning of the week in the Rundkino Dresden cinema with a ceremonial enrolment and welcomed into the university's academic community. 

Welcome by the Rector: ‘Maturing through education’

Rector Professor Katrin Salchert warmly welcomed the first-semester students: ‘Today you are at the beginning of one of the most beautiful and exciting times of your lives, with a high level of personal responsibility for your actions, a thirst for knowledge and a zest for life. Take advantage of the opportunities you have been given! You will also notice changes in yourself - at the end of your studies you will leave the university as a person who has matured in many ways. Above all, you will mature through education: Because education is a fundamental part of your personal development. It doesn't just mean acquiring knowledge, it also means a sense of responsibility, a willingness to compromise and the ability to form opinions and take a stand on current political, economic and social developments.’

The Rector encouraged students to broaden their personal horizons and go abroad during their studies: ‘Gain international experience. Get to know new languages and other cultures and cultivate the European idea. Live cosmopolitanism and interculturality!’ 

Tools for your career

The Saxon Minister of State for Science, Sebastian Gemkow, also welcomed the students to the academic community at HTW Dresden: ‘Here you will get the tools you need for a successful career in a Saxon company. HTW Dresden is closely connected to the economy and is always close to the needs of modern and innovative companies in teaching and research.’ 

Commitment and community

The Chairman of the University Council, Professor Peter Joehnk, emphasised the importance of the two university committees, the Student Council and the University Council, as important companions of the university and invited the students to participate: ‘We always need alert and critical minds to positively influence the development of our society.’ 

Tino Köhler, Chairman of the Student Council, gave his future fellow students two habits to take with them: ‘Take a practical, active part in university life - whether in university sports, language learning or committee work. [...] See yourselves as a university community and work together.’

In the ‘Welcome to Dresden’ panel discussion, the first Lord Mayor of the City of Dresden, Jan Donhauser, the head of the Student Union, Michael Rollberg, student counsellor Mira Höfler, sports coordinator Nick Breuer and the chairman of the student association Faranto, Victor Parade, spoke about the opportunities and challenges of studying. 

‘Be brave and try things out!’

Hanna Liebrecht and Pepe Funk, who both study at HTW Dresden, hosted the programme. At the end of the programme, Hanna gave the first-year students the following advice: ‘All doors are open to you during your studies. New friendships, voluntary work, exciting projects, new experiences abroad. So make the most of this time, be brave and try things out. And even if not everything works right away, remember: the proof of the pudding is in the eating.

The event was accompanied by music from the chamber orchestra without a conductor. There were also live acts by students from the jazz class at the Dresden University of Music (HfM), accompanied by videos by design students on a large cinema screen. The two pieces are the result of a joint study project between the HFM and the HTWD last summer semester.

 Honouring the best students

Every year, the university honours the best graduates of each faculty from the previous year as part of the matriculation ceremony. Robin Koller (Mechanical Engineering), Elisa Kallisch (Geoinformation), Selina Schober (Economics), Jakob Putz (Civil Engineering), Anne Christin Teuser (Agriculture/Environment/Chemistry), Janis Kowalick (Computer Science/Mathematics), Paul Simon Sossalla (Electrical Engineering) and Severin Göbel-Groß (Faculty of Design) were honoured. Maximilian Frost from the Faculty of Business Administration and Economics received the HTW Dresden Sponsors' Association Award for outstanding academic achievement. 

In addition, the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) sponsorship prize was awarded to Elvira Akhmadieva from the Environmental Engineering degree programme as the best foreign student. 

Extensive programme to get to know each other

The enrolment ceremony marks the start of the introductory week for first-year students. For the following days, the Student Council (StuRa), the Student Advisory Service and the faculties have prepared an extensive programme for the new students to get to know the university. 

There are also numerous offers for the 135 international students starting at the university in the winter semester - from barbecues and city rallies to a hike in Saxon Switzerland. The International Week is organised by Faranto e.V. and the International Office.