Into the World and Back Again – Alumni Day and Faculty Weeks Opened
Alumni Day and Faculty Weeks Officially Opened
Last Saturday, Professor Ute Habel, Vice-Rector for International Affairs, and Professor Bernd Markert, the Rectorate’s Delegate for Alumni, opened the RWTH Alumni Day, held on the occasion of the University’s 150th anniversary, via livestream from the RWTH International Academy’s film studio.
After the screening of a short, atmospheric film about this year’s graduation celebration, Rector Ulrich Rüdiger welcomed the attendants with a video message. Subsequently, Ute Habel provided the alumni with an overview of recent developments at the University and looked back on the recent anniversary festivities.
Habel and Markert then had online conversations with alumni Dr. Josef Kim, now an RWTH representative, and Dr. Stefan Janssen, LG Electronics, in Seoul, South Korea, as well as with Professor Doni Putra from Universitas Gadjah Mada, one of RWTH’s partner universities, in Yogyakarta, Indonesia.
Next on the agenda was a virtual tour of the city of Aachen, followed by an interview with Professor Ernst Schmachtenberg, chair of the proRWTH association of friends and supporters of RWTH. The former rector of RWTH emphasized the importance of receiving support from external partners, in particular to be able to help fund the University’s clubs and student associations.
Finally, Professor Ute Habel and Professor Bernd Markert set the mood for the Alumni Day program, screening a trailer on the so-called themed routes of the Alumni Day, featuring innovations made in Aachen in the research areas of Production Technology, Energy and Mobility, and Medical Engineering.
Faculty Weeks
The Alumni Day will be followed by the Faculty Weeks, which offer a wide range of online events open to alumni worldwide: In the coming weeks, there will be a program of videos, Zoom meetings, and other virtual content with current research activities and networking opportunities of the faculties. RWTH's Profile Areas will also be featured.
Additional offerings from other fields, such as international affairs, career development, and entrepreneurship as live sessions or on-demand events round off this special program. At the start of each faculty week, the respective deans will not miss the opportunity to welcome their alumni “live.”
Alumni and alumni groups in Germany and abroad will also participate in the program. They will report on the activities of their alumni organizations and exciting projects from their pro fessional lives. In particular, the online formats via Zoom offer opportunities to interact with each other.