Since 2011, the university has participated in the Deutschlandstipendium - a scholarship programme that is funded equally by the federal government and private sponsors. With the "Teachers for Students" programme, the university now wants to attract new sponsors. An interview with Vice President Prof Dr Sabine Kyora.
QUESTION: Mrs Kyora, what is behind the "Teachers for Students" campaign?
ANSWER: Firstly, the campaign is of course aimed at university lecturers. They are responsible for research and teaching, they bear great responsibility in the Schools and fulfil this responsibility in many ways. This year, we would also like to ask them for their help in raising donations for the Deutschlandstipendium. The Deutschlandstipendium scholarship now makes it very easy to support young academics. It doesn't always have to be a whole scholarship: Donations of 10 euros or more can be made to our scholarship fund. You can decide for yourself which School, which subject and which degree you would like to support. The campaign is therefore intended as a wake-up call to our professors to activate their professional and personal networks in order to find suitable sponsors for the young people they are training in their Schools and Institutes. On the other hand, we would like to address the students themselves. We want to encourage them to approach potential sponsors - whether outside or inside the university. This may take some courage and self-confidence, but it often pays off. After all, the more educational sponsors we can convince of the Deutschlandstipendium, the more scholarships we can award and the better the chances are for each applicant to be honoured with a scholarship.
QUESTION: Have you already gained experience with scholarship holders who are directly supported by university lecturers?
ANSWER: Yes, we certainly have. One of our most loyal sponsors is Prof Klaus P. Kohse, Dean of Studies at Faculty VI. Together with his wife, he has been supporting students at the University of Oldenburg since 2012 - and not just from his own School. Last year, more university lecturers joined those who had already been involved for some time, which I was very pleased about. This year, of course, we are hoping for more. There is still plenty of room.
QUESTION: How do you assess the effect of such a relationship between professor and student - could it put additional pressure on the scholarship holders?
ANSWER: Our experience suggests the opposite. The Deutschlandstipendium is a study grant that is awarded on the basis of achievements that have already been made. Although it is awarded in the expectation of further outstanding achievements, it is already earned in the truest sense of the word at the time it is awarded. Anyone who receives a Deutschlandstipendium therefore owes nothing to anyone. Nevertheless, the special feature of this scholarship programme is that it brings scholarship holders together with sponsors. Where we have experienced this between teachers and students at our university, the experience has been consistently positive. Above all, personal contact breaks down barriers. This often opens up completely new perspectives on the working and living environment of a university. Not to mention professional opportunities.
QUESTION: How is it decided who gets a scholarship and who doesn't?
ANSWER: The decision on awarding the scholarships is made by a selection committee, which is made up of the Deans of the Schools and the Chief Gender Equality Officer under my Chair. An evaluation of hundreds of applications must, of course, also be pre-structured. This is where the evaluation procedures come into play, which our Scholarships service centre has developed over the last two years with the help of feedback from scholarship holders. I would also like to take this opportunity to emphasise that academic performance is not the only factor in the selection process. The other criteria are by no means secondary. This year, we are paying particular attention to volunteer work. However, we are also continuing our long-standing practice of taking into account personal limitations, raising children alongside studies and other factors that have been proven to make an academic career more difficult.
QUESTION: Is there a formula for the perfect scholarship holder?
ANSWER: We always say: high-performing and committed students. And that sums it up very well. Academic performance is the main criterion, as the law makes clear. However, we - that means me, the entire Presidential Board and our sponsors - want students who are committed as well as having good grades. Volunteering is a wonderful way to look beyond your own needs and limitations and to grow. Open-minded students who are interested in the world and in their fellow human beings and who are committed to the common good - these are my personal dream applicants.
QUESTION: What does a sponsor get out of a scholarship like this?
ANSWER: As a sponsor, you have the opportunity to get to know people who have all the qualities that employers - be they research institutions, schools, companies or NGOs - are looking for today and that our society needs in the 21st century: Professionally well-trained, open-minded and committed. If the Deutschlandstipendium does one thing with certainty, it is to find a selection of students who fulfil these criteria. And as we have many more of them at the University of Oldenburg than we have been able to award in recent years, I very much hope that we will be able to award more scholarships again this year.
