"We celebrate an important milestone!" - Graduates receive their Bachelor's and Master's certificates

2022-05-25

After a pandemic of more than two years, this year's Bachelor's and Master's graduates were finally able to receive their certificates in person and in a ceremonial setting. The bbw Hochschule - University of Applied Sciences said goodbye to a total of 110 graduates of the winter semester 2021/22 and the summer semester 2021 in the Estrel Hotel Berlin. The graduate students included both Bachelor's and Master's graduates from the fields of economics and business management, industrial engineering and engineering sciences. A total of 349 students successfully completed their studies in both semesters.

At the beginning of the ceremony, Prof. Dr. Beate Schultz-Zehden and Prof. Dr.-Ing. Gebhard Hafer led the graduates to their seats to the musical accompaniment of saxophonist Mercedes. After Ursula Schwill, Chancellor of the bbw Hochschule - University of Applied Sciences, welcomed all the graduates present, their families and friends, staff and professors of the bbw Hochschule - University of Applied Sciences and all the other guests, Prof. Hafer continued with a laudatory speech. "Today you are all certainly very happy, happy to have completed your studies in a turbulent time, happy about your achievements and grades, happy to be celebrating today with so many dear people. We are happy about this with you today." In addition to congratulations, Prof. Hafer reflected on the pandemic-related switch to online teaching. "I'm sure you can all remember how we used to look the first time for the buttons in Web Ex to take part in an online lecture. Or, for example, when the camera was switched on and something suddenly appeared in the background that made us forget the content of the lecture because everyone was only concentrating on what was happening in the background." Following his laudation, Prof. Hafer announced the keynote speaker Michael Dorn, Sales Director of SAP AG.

In addition to a few words about himself and SAP AG, Michael Dorn reminisced about his professional career and gave the audience some exciting insights. . Among the guests in the room was also Andrej Bievetski, Managing Director of SAP Labs C.I.S. Michael Dorn gave the word spontaneously to his friend and colleague. He concluded by motivating the graduates with the words: "Cultivate your technological competences, your key digital competences, your classical competences and your transformative competences, your social competences and your professional empathy, your conviction and your self-confidence, your network, professionally and privately, and don't forget: Give first, then take!"

Then came the most important part of the day, the certificate ceremony! Ursula Schwill called the graduates onto the stage in groups, according to the individual courses of study. To applause, the graduates received their certificates from their course director. Johanna Meißner, graduate of the Master's programme in Real Estate Project Management, was honoured as the best student of the year and received a certificate from Prof. Hafer and Michael Dorn.

After a rousing musical performance, Sandra Kluck gave a speech of thanks on behalf of all graduates. She found appropriate words for the studies now behind her and joked about some of the situations during the online lectures. "Thanks to un-muted microphones, we even had the involuntary embarrassment of getting to know the social environment of our fellow students better. I remember phone calls, romantic afternoon dates, hoovers in the background, but also the synergies of interested guest students from the family."

At the end of the official event, the traditional hat toss was of course not to be missed! Afterwards, the graduates had a well-deserved toast to their graduation with family, friends and the professors and staff of the bbw Hochschule - University of Applied Sciences.