Talent in focus
HKA honors its best graduates of the past academic year at the Academic Year Celebration. In a festive setting, the award winners receive their prizes from sponsors from business and society.
We are delighted with the success of our graduates and would like to introduce them and their theses in more detail.
The 2025 Academic Annual Celebration took place on October 9, 2025. The award winners will be listed here in detail at monthly intervals.
Graduate Nico Nachtrieb
Nico Nachtrieb successfully completed both his Bachelor's and Master's degree in Civil Engineering at the HKA. At the annual academic ceremony, he received an award from the Seeger and Dürr Foundation for his outstanding master's thesis on wood-concrete composite ceilings. It is no coincidence that he chose wood as the material for his Master's thesis: as a trained carpenter, he has a special professional relationship with this material.
Graduate Nick Schäuble
Nick Schäuble was awarded the Blanc und Fischer Corporate Services GmbH prize for his outstanding master's thesis on the processing of fermentation residues in biogas plants. The results of his master's thesis laid the foundation for his own research plant and for his subsequent doctorate at the Institute of Refrigeration, Air Conditioning and Environmental Technology. What drives him? His enthusiasm for electrical engineering and information technology. This becomes more than clear in our video. His passion is palpable, infectious and convincing.
Doctoral student Marco Baumgartner
Marco Baumgartner has been awarded a doctoral scholarship from the Heinrich Hertz Foundation. He studied industrial engineering at the HKA and is now a doctoral student at the Institute for Learning and Innovation in Networks. His doctoral thesis deals with the human-machine interface (employees and AI) and examines how employees react to AI introductions and which justifications are accepted or not accepted. In our podcast, we talked in detail about his scientific work as well as AI acceptance in general, the credibility of eco-promises and the potential benefits of AI for people with disabilities.
Graduate Dennis Griebler
Dennis Griebler studied computer science with us and received an award from Siemens AG for his outstanding master's thesis. In his master's thesis, he deals with the structuring and linking of software for control units in order to completely decouple hardware and software and thus gain flexibility. In an interview with our editorial team, he not only provides detailed insights into his Master's thesis and his enthusiasm for technical challenges, but also talks about courageous and life-changing decisions.
Student Chris Jemming
Bachelor's student Chris Jemming received the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) prize at the 2025 Academic Year Celebration. Born in Luxembourg, he studies computer science and was recognized for his outstanding commitment to the student council and the IWI e. V. student association as well as the HKA student parliament. His multilingualism is of great benefit to him. In our podcast, he talks about his home country Luxembourg, his impressions of Germany and studying at the HKA, including a language sample in Luxembourgish.
