Prizes and scholarships awarded in the field of chemistry
In 2021, two students were awarded a Dr Reuß Prize. Three students received a scholarship from the Kaufmann-Peters Foundation.
The two awards have been awarded at Heidelberg University for several years thanks to two extraordinary donors. The Kaufmann-Peters Foundation is a legally dependent foundation in the assets of Heidelberg University (corporate assets). It was established on the basis of the last will of Hanna Kaufmann in 2011 and pursues the purpose of supporting and promoting university students and doctoral candidates in the field of chemistry at Heidelberg University. The foundation's elite support programme is one such support measure and is aimed at particularly high-achieving and motivated Master's students in the field of chemistry. Since the winter semester 2015 | 2016, up to four students per year have the chance to be accepted into this programme and to who receive a support of €300 per month for a maximum of two years. Since 2021, Julia and Joshua have been one oft them.
Joshua was also awarded the Dr Reuß Prize for his outstanding Bachelor's thesis, which was awarded to Nicole, too. The prize, which is aimed at above-average graduates in organic and inorganic chemistry, is made possible by the Dr Nikolaus and Dr Mira Reuß Foundation, which is also part of the assets of Heidelberg University. Dr Mira Reuß has good reason to be thankful for research in chemistry in the Mannheim-Heidelberg metropolitan area. She herself was involved in research and development on the corporate side for many years. With the establishment of the Dr Nikolaus and Dr Mira Reuß Foundation, which also bears the name of her late husband, the donor would like to permanently support the internationally recognised Department of Chemistry at the university, which has been awarded several Nobel Prizes. Since 2017, the Dr Reuß Prize has been awarded thanks to the foundation.
“Being accepted into the elite support programme 'Excellence in Chemistry' of the Kaufmann-Peters Foundation and receiving the Dr Reuß Prize means a lot to me. These awards show that it is definitely worth putting a lot of time and effort into your studies and that is a great feeling.”
Joshua is in the first semester of his Master's programme in the field of chemistry at Heidelberg University in the winter semester 2022 | 2023. He has been studying in Heidelberg since his Bachelor's degree and has never regretted his decision to study at Ruperto Carola. As a child of the region, the excellent reputation of Heidelberg University and the beauty of the city were not foreign to him and it was precisely this reputation that according to him was confirmed during his bachelor's degree, which he successfully completed in the summer of 2021 with his bachelor's thesis on "Disclosing the Perkin Reaction as a Strategy towards Macrocyclic Phenanthrene Dimers". Joshua especially enjoys the wide-ranging and research-oriented teaching, which is why he absolutely wanted to stay in Heidelberg for his Master's degree. He would like to build on his achievements made so far during his Bachelor's degree and is already planning a stay abroad in the third semester. After his Master's degree, Joshua wants to start a doctorate.
“I am very happy about the scholarship from the Kaufmann-Peters Foundation since for me it is a token of appreciation of my commitment and determination in my Bachelor's studies, and this increases my motivation for my further academic career.”
To Julia, the close links between teaching and current research were crucial to her decision to study at Heidelberg University. She particularly appreciates the large number of interdisciplinary institutes which provide interesting insights into a world beyond "classical chemistry". The opportunity to make valuable contacts at the university, to receive support for additional efforts, such as internships, scientific workshops or lectures, means a lot to her. In her Bachelor's thesis, she dealt with Raman spectroscopy on field-effect transistors with networks of carbon nanotubes. Julia will also complete her Master's degree in Heidelberg. As part of her degree programme, she would like to focus on physical chemistry and also spend a semester abroad. Afterwards, Julia would like to do a doctorate.
"Receiving the Dr Reuß Prize is not only a great honour, but also a confirmation and encouragement to continue on my chosen path and to pursue my goals in the future as determined and resolutely as before.“
Nicole has been fascinated by chemistry since her school days. Successful participations in school science competitions as well as reaching the fourth round of the selection process for the 2018 International Chemistry Olympiad brought her into contact with university institutions at an early stage. During a two-week internship at the Institute for Geosciences at the University of Heidelberg in summer 2017, she already had the chance to get to know the university and its city. That is why Nicole decided that she definitely wanted to study chemistry at Heidelberg University after her Abitur (higher education entrance qualification). Today, she says that this was one of the best decisions of her life. For her, the appeal of her degree programme lies above all in the fluid boundaries to other scientific disciplines as well as mathematics, supplemented by the language and foreign language requirements of the degree programme as well as the importance of practical work in the laboratory. She also very much enjoys the exchange and collegiality. She is interested in green chemistry, which is why her Bachelor's thesis dealt with benzoin condensations as environmentally friendly synthesis strategies for organic electrode materials for more sustainable batteries. Nicole will also do her Master's degree in Heidelberg and is already planning her stay at the University of Notre Dame (USA) in the third semester.
