Starting signal for studies

On October 2, 2024, the Zittau/Görlitz University of Applied Sciences (HSZG) held its annual enrollment ceremony in the impressive St. John’s Church in the city of Zittau. This event traditionally marks the beginning of the new academic year and serves as an official welcome for all new students. Over 700 attendees gathered to celebrate this important moment in the lives of our freshmen.

High Above and Warmly Welcomed

Starting at 2:30 p.m., guests were invited to admire the architectural features of Zittau’s Protestant church, make new connections over coffee and pastries, or climb the 266 steps up to the St. John’s Tower. From the top, guests were treated to an impressive view of the city of Zittau, the surrounding region, and, of course, the HSZG campus.

The subsequent ceremony was hosted by Aileen Baumgärtner. The master’s student in the health care management program charmingly guided the audience through the varied program, which began with welcoming remarks from Zittau’s mayor, Thomas Zenker, and the pastor, Ms. Arne Mehnert.

In his subsequent commencement address, HSZG Rector Prof. Dr.-Ing. Alexander Kratzsch offered words of encouragement to the first-semester students: “Today’s enrolment marks the beginning of a new chapter in your lives. You have chosen to study at a university that offers you not only an outstanding academic education but also the opportunity for personal growth, networking, and putting what you’ve learned into practice right away—for the benefit of society.” He emphasized that students can always rely on the strong sense of community that is fostered at HSZG. Whether it’s the campus app, university sports, or Health Management, the president also encouraged students to take advantage of the university’s diverse offerings and to make the most of their time here.

A wheel of fortune and a longboard

The program was accompanied musically by the Klangfarben big band, which performed with a smaller lineup due to space constraints. Choirmaster Johannes Dette impressed the audience with his brilliant organ playing, while Romy Wolf, a student in the fields of culture and management, enchanted the audience with her violin performance under the theme “Pop Meets Classic.”

A highlight was the symbolic enrollment ceremony, during which the rector spun a digital wheel of fortune that revealed to the host which faculty she should introduce to the audience next. For each faculty, she asked a few questions of one student in the audience and the respective Dean. The entertaining and informative round of introductions, which also included the preparatory college, was very well received.

One new student was particularly delighted to be addressed directly by host Aileen Baumgärtner. Pia Hegewald, a student of molecular biotechnology, participated in the HSZG raffle during the spring college information day and was delighted to receive the grand prize: an exclusively designed HSZG longboard.

In addition to the presentation of the 2024 DAAD Award for outstanding performance by international students to Zhaniya Pirmoldayeva from Kazakhstan by the Vice President for Education and International Affairs, Prof. Sophia Keil, and the presentation of the award for exceptional academic and social commitment by international students—from the Friends of Zittau/Görlitz University Association— to Polish student Nina Wrzesinska by Chairman Mario Linack, the event was rounded out by the presentation of this year’s Germany Scholarships and the keynote address by the Chair of the University Council, Prof. Dr.-Ing. Welf-Guntram Drossel, rounded out the varied program.

Capturing the Moment

The ceremony at St. John’s Church marked the beginning of a successful day of events. Afterward, the group made its way across the Zittauer Markt to the campus, where the first-semester photo was taken . At the get-together in Building Z IV , the newly enrolled students, their guests, and the numerous visitors to the HSZG celebrated with music by a DJ, delicious food, and refreshing drinks.

Another highlight was the inauguration of the ZukLOS trailer “Mobile Learning Spaces,” designed to attract students to STEM education. In the future, the extracurricular educational landscape of Upper Lusatia will offer even more innovative learning opportunities in STEM through the “Zukunftslernort Oberlausitz” (ZukLOS) project, with the goal of providing individualized support for young people. The new Sprinter van with a trailer will travel to schools and other educational institutions as a decentralized program to inspire students on-site with a variety of on-board experiments in STEM subjects.

During the enrollment ceremonies on the Zittau campus, the numerous guests were able to experience the program firsthand and were pleasantly surprised. We would like to take this opportunity to extend our sincere thanks to Franziska Schubert. We owe the project’s funding to this member of the Saxon State Parliament, who secured the so-called PMO funds. Naturally, she did not miss the opportunity that day to officiate the inauguration together with the rector, the Vice President for Education and International Affairs, and the chair of the University Council.

Memories That Last

Any first-year students who still had questions, wanted to chat with fellow students, or simply wanted to make initial contacts within their own faculty could turn to representatives at the faculty tables and the Studienkolleg information desk. Numerous upperclassmen and staff members were on hand to answer questions from the newly enrolled students.

Every first-year student could receive a gift from the HSZG Friends Association and find out about the university’s sports programs, the campus app, the DLR, and the HSZG’s environmental management at the information booths .

Anyone who wanted to could have a personalized souvenir made at the screen-printing booth before heading to Görlitz by shuttle bus. There, the celebration continued well into the night at the Maus student club.

Photos: Marcel Schröder
Text: Cornelia Rothe