Promoting talent for committed students: Witten/Herdecke University awards 31 Germany Scholarships

Outstanding talent and commitment: a total of 31 students at Witten/Herdecke University (UW/H) will receive a Deutschlandstipendium scholarship from October 2022 to September 2023, providing them with monthly support of 300 euros. The scholarship recipients were able to meet their sponsors in person for the first time at a celebratory meeting.

"Social commitment, social justice and equal opportunities are particularly important to us at UW/H - which is why I am delighted to be able to award more students this year than ever before," explained Dirk Jakobs, Vice President for Organisational Development, at the ceremony.

Scholarship holder Lisa Touray: "I am incredibly grateful for the freedom that the Deutschlandstipendium gives me"

The Deutschlandstipendium scholarship gives scholarship holders the freedom to concentrate more on their studies or expand their voluntary work. Since 2011, the number of scholarship recipients at the UW/H has grown from five to 31.

One of them is Lisa Touray, who is currently studying medicine in her fourth semester at UW/H. She originally comes from Gambia, has seven siblings and only moved to Germany at the age of 12. The Deutschlandstipendium scholarship gives the trained nurse the freedom she needs to volunteer for various student initiatives and organise workshops on happiness and satisfaction for students: "I'm incredibly grateful for the freedom that the Deutschlandstipendium scholarship gives me: with such a demanding course of study, it's a challenge to work on the side," Touray reports. "When you no longer have money worries, you can concentrate fully on your studies and have enough time for the voluntary projects that you really enjoy."

Many sponsors have been supporting the Deutschlandstipendium for many years

The special feature of the Deutschlandstipendium is its funding model: half of the funding comes from the federal government, while Witten/Herdecke University has raised the other half from companies, foundations and numerous private individuals. Many of them have been supporting the Deutschlandstipendium at UW/H for many years, both financially and ideally. This year, the University would like to thank: Peter Pohlmann, Christa Thoben (former Minister of Economics), Anita Pfeil, Klaus Rommel, Tillmann Neinhaus, Michael Berger, Hans Pechtel, Werner Koopmann, the Witten/Herdecke University Study Fund, the Wittener Universitätsgesellschaft e.V., Volksbank Bochum Witten eG, the Marga and Kurt Möllgaard Foundation, the Dr Werner Jackstädt Foundation, Dr Ausbüttel & Co. GmbH and Continentale Krankenversicherung a.G.

This year, the following students received a Deutschlandstipendium:

• Psychology (B. Sc. and M. Sc.): Svea Hinz, Allegra-Sophie Muthwill, Franca Grafe, Maria Jaghinyan, Leonie Ries, Daniel Bernard Niewrzol, Anna Merten, Meret Maurer, Lisa Settele, Chiara Klaeren, Vejune Ivanauskeite, Theresa Frische
• Medicine: Jane Ludwig, Janine Schemme, Jennifer Frey, Maria Drenk, Lea Braun, Lisa Touray, Leah-Abelina Sinka, Charlotta Lisett Hülsmann, Lisanne Holz, Leon Grahn
• Dentistry, Oral and Maxillofacial Medicine: Anna-Lena Hampe, Ina Fehmer, Marie Theres Trennhaus
• Ethics & Organisation (M. Sc.): Fabio Zanolli
• Management (B. Sc.): Felix Schönstein
• General Management (M. A.): Lena Miriam Berendt
• PPÖ - Philosophy, Politics and Economics (B. A.): Paulina Unfried, Frederic von Bernstorff, Jonas Redecker
• PPE - Philosophy, Politics and Economics (M. A.): Aurora Mane
• Community Health Nursing (M. Sc.): Nina Brandenburger

Facts and figures about the Deutschlandstipendium:

• The Deutschlandstipendium was introduced in 2011 with the aim of supporting high-achieving and committed young people on their educational path and further developing the scholarship culture in Germany.
• Since the start of the programme, around 256 million euros have been raised by companies, associations, foundations and private individuals, with over 30 million in 2021 alone.
• The number of scholarship recipients currently stands at just under 29,000, just over half of whom are women. In terms of numbers, the most Germany Scholarships are awarded in NRW.