Under the SmILe idea competition, all students at Mainz University of Applied Sciences were invited to submit ideas to improve studies and teaching.
This year's focus was on the forward-looking topics of interculturality, sustainability, new work, knowledge culture, and diversity. Students were given the opportunity to choose a topic and submit ideas containing concrete proposals for solutions.
Out of 19 submissions, eight ideas made it to the final round. The top three were selected by an interdisciplinary panel of judges made up of students and faculty. An additional audience prize was awarded as part of the LEHRImpuls event. Here are the four winners and their ideas at a glance:
1st prize (1,000 Euro)
The student lending station – sustainable, social, and money-saving
School of Business/Ivette Scherer
Ivette Scherer’s idea addresses the problem faced by students who rarely have sufficient room or funds for special items that are rarely used in everyday life, such as drills. To save money and resources, her vision is to offer students the opportunity to borrow items for moving, for traveling, for their household, for parties, or for recreational activities at a station in a cost-effective and eco-friendly fashion.
2nd prize (500 Euro)
Global Campus – An idea to establish an international network of students
School of Design/Sarah Wagner
Sarah Wagner proposes a university-wide festival at which teaching staff and students have the opportunity to immerse themselves in different nations and cultures. Lectures by lecturers from international partner universities shed light on a variety of topics from an intercultural perspective. Opportunities to exchange ideas, presentations by social clubs, and communal game nights and meals are also designed to provide opportunities for more in-depth conversations. The aim of the idea is to promote community and international exchange at the university.
3rd prize (300 Euro)
Flourish your garden – A sustainable working group for the university
School of Business/Isabel auf dem Brinke
Isabel auf dem Brinke’s idea is to set up a working group to look after a planter box on campus. The box is intended to contribute to the greening of the university on the one hand, and to provide tips on improving sustainability in the form of information materials on the other. The open working group concept and a tablet integrated into the box for ideas and feedback invite people to get involved.
Audience award (300 Euro)
Thesis Tinder – An idea on how to find a supervisor for your thesis
School of Business/Lorena Suffel
Lorena Suffel won the audience award with her idea Thesis Tinder. Her idea offers a solution that will help students find thesis supervisors. Students can view the profiles of faculty members and their main topics in an app. The lecturers, in turn, are shown the profiles of students and their ideas for topics. Using a swipe like in a dating app, students and lecturers will be able to find each other more quickly.
Many thanks to all the students who took part and to the members of the panel of judges:
- Prof. Dr. Anna Rosinus – School of Business
- Prof. Dr. Klaus Böhm – School of Engineering
- Prof. Julia Kühne – School of Design
- Ana Jelicic-Lovrekovic – School of Business, student
- Johanna Moog – School of Design, student
- Camila Rüger – School of Engineering, student
The jury and the Competence Center for Innovation in Studies and Teaching would like to congratulate all the winners.
So what happens now with the winning ideas?
The Competence Center for Innovation in Studies and Teaching and the Changemaker teaching team will work with the winners in the coming year to assess the feasibility of the ideas.
SmILe
SmILe stands for Studierende mit Ideen für die Lehre, which translates as 'Students with Teaching Ideas'. In the competition, which is held every two years, students can present ideas for university life and teaching at Mainz University of Applied Sciences. The aim of the competition is to enable students to participate and involve them in the further development of the university.