The Student Council’s Teaching Prize

Background and general information

In the summer semester of 2013, the Student Council awarded the “Physics Student Council’s Teaching Prize” for the first time. Since then, the prize is given out on a yearly basis each summer semester. We consider both the previous winter semester and the ongoing summer semester. The award ceremony takes place in the framework of the General Physical Colloquium; ideally, the Student Council also invites a guest speaker for the occasion.

To obtain as good a data basis and comparability as possible, we restrict ourselves to lectures, i. e. seminars and lab courses (which also do not represent a distinct teaching performance by one teacher) are not considered. Moreover, the course regularly has to exhibit at least 15 (optional courses/master’s) or 30 (mandatory courses/bachelor’s) participants (course evaluation feedback forms). Further, we do not consider any courses from the teacher’s programs (Seminar für Didaktik des Sachunterrichts, Institut für die Didaktik der Physik, Institut für Technik und ihre Didaktik) and the geophysics programs, with the exception of introductory lectures which are also taken by physics students with geophysics as a minor subject. These courses have their own student councils or are not comparable in a sensible way.

We primarily use the results of the course evaluation (access restricted) as criteria. However, this is not a point-by-point comparison, but an overview evaluation and weighting which also includes the clear text answers. If there are any direct experiences, these can also be considered. A Teaching Prize Committee will make a proposal to the Student Council and have a decision made there.

The following courses will be considered this year

• Basic lectures (bachelor’s in physics): Physik I–III, Theoretische Ergänzungen zu Physik II & III, Atom- und Molekülphysik, Einführung in die Quantenmechanik, Messtechnik und Signalverarbeitung, Quantentheorie, Statistische Physik, Kern- und Teilchenphysik, Physik der kondensierten Materie
• Basic lectures in geophysics: Einführung in die Geophysik, Geophysikalische Grundlagen I, Geophysik für Fortgeschrittene III , Geophysikalische Grundlagen II
• Course lectures (master’s in physics): Kern- und Teilchenphysik II, Materialphysik I, Festkörperphysik I (Einführung in die Festkörpertheorie), Theoretische Nichtlineare Physik I; Allgemeine Relativitätstheorie
• Physics as a minor subject: Physik für Mediziner, Zahnmediziner, Pharmazeuten, Landschaftsökologen und Biologen; Physik für Humanmediziner, Zahnmediziner und Pharmazeuten; Physik A; Physik B

Crossed-out courses or optional courses which we have not considered due to low numbers of participants or evaluation feedback are regularly checked for inclusion in the list in the coming years.

Laureates and laudations

• Laureate 2022: Prof. Dr. Tilmann Kuhn

  The Physics Student Council has awarded the annual “Physics Student Council’s Teaching Prize” on 2022-07-14 from 16:00 in the General Physical Colloquium (HS 2). This year’s laureate is Prof. Dr. Tilmann Kuhn with his lectures "Atomic and quantum physics" and "Theoretical quantum optics".

  Our guest speaker this year was Dr. Renè Wittmann from the Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf with a presentation on Topology of orientational defects of smectic colloidal liquid crystals in extreme confinement.

• Laureate 2021: Prof. Dr. Carsten Schuck und Prof. Dr. Cornelia Denz

  The Physics Student Council has awarded the annual “Physics Student Council’s Teaching Prize” on 2021-07-15 from 16:00 in the General Physical Colloquium (HS 2). This year’s laureate is Prof. Dr. Carsten Schuck with his lectures "Atomic and molecular physics", "Quantum communicartion and quantum sensors" and "Quantum computers and quantum simulators".
  In addition, there was a special prize this year: Prof. Dr. Cornelia Denz received an award in honour of her dedicated work in addition to teaching and research in the fields of gender equality, support of students from school, and career advancement.

  Our guest speaker this year was Dr. Paul M. Näger from the WWU with a presentation on The Mereological Problem of Entanglement.

• Laureate 2020: Prof. Dr. Alexander Kappes

  The Physics Student Council has awarded the annual “Physics Student Council’s Teaching Prize” on 2020-07-09 from 16:00 in the General Physical Colloquium (HS 2). This year’s laureate is Prof. Dr. Alexander Kappes with his lectures “Physics for Physician, Dentists, Pharmacists and Biologists” and “Neutrino Physics”.

  Our guest speaker this year was Prof. Dr. Carlo Ewerz from the University of Heidelberg with a presentation on "The quantum world as hologram – applied physics of black holes".

• Laureate 2019: Prof. Dr. Peter Krüger

  The Physics Student Council has awarded the annual “Physics Student Council’s Teaching Prize” on 2019-07-11 from 16:00 in the General Physical Colloquium (HS 2). This year’s laureate is Prof. Dr. Peter Krüger with his lectures "Electronic Correlations and Magnetism" and "Introduction to Quantum Mechanics".

  Our guest speaker this year was M. Sc. Raffaela Busse from the WWU with a presentation on "One night at the South Pole - A Story of neutrinos, kerosene and polar lights".

• Laureate 2018: PD. Dr. Svetlana Gurevich

  The Physics Student Council has awarded the annual “Physics Student Council’s Teaching Prize” on 2018-07-19 from 16:00 in the General Physical Colloquium (HS 2). This year’s laureate is PD. Dr. Svetlana Gurevich with her lecture numerical methods for complex systems I.

  Our guest speaker this year was Prof. Dr. Sibylle Günter from the Max-Planck-Institute of Plasma Physics with a presentation on "fusionresearch: Bring the Sun to the Earth?".

• Laureate 2017: Prof. Dr. Alfons Khoukaz

  The Physics Student Council has awarded the annual “Physics Student Council’s Teaching Prize” on 2017-07-27 from 16:00 in the General Physical Colloquium (HS 2). This year’s laureate is Prof. Dr. Alfons Khoukaz with his lecture nuclear and particle physics.

  Our guest speaker this year was Prof. Dr. Klaus Lüders from the Free University of Berlin with a presentation on „ice-cold super phenomena“.

   

• Laureate 2016: Prof. Dr. Nikos Doltsinis

  The Physics Student Council has awarded the annual “Physics Student Council’s Teaching Prize” on 2016-07-21 from 16:00 in the General Physical Colloquium (HS 2). This year’s laureate is Prof. Dr. Nikos Doltsinis with his lecture Introduction to Quantum Mechanics.

  Our guest speaker this year was Dr. Römer from the university Duisburg-Essen with a presentation on the “Magic of Magnetism”.

• Laureate 2015: Prof. Dr. Michael Rohlfing

  Already for the third time, the Student Council has awarded the “Physics Student Council’s Teaching Prize”. The prize was given to Prof. Dr. Michael Rohlfing on 2015-07-16 starting at 16 o’clock in the General Physical Colloquium [de] (HS 2).

  As guest speaker for the prize this year, Dr. Katharina Krüger, patent referee and patent scout at the Arbeitsstelle Forschungstransfer (AFO) here at WWU Münster, was invited and spoke about the topic “Erfindungen und Patente aus der WWU” (“Inventions and patents from the WWU”).

• Laureate 2014: Prof. Dr. Rudolf Bratschitsch

  The laureate of the year 2013/2014 [de] will be announced 2014-07-10 starting at 16 o’clock in the General Physical Colloquium and awarded with the Teaching Prize. The guest speaker, Prof. Michael Schreckenberg from the University of Duisburg-Essen, will provide the appropriate setting with his talk “Unser Leben im Stau – Neue Erkenntnisse der Verkehrsphysik” (“Our life in the traffic jam – New insights from traffic physics”).

• Laureate 2013: Prof. Dr. Gernot Münster

  The laureate of the year 2012/2013 [de] will be announced 2013-07-18 starting at 16 o’clock in the General Physical Colloquium and awarded with the Teaching Prize. The guest speaker, Prof. Metin Tolan from TU Dortmund, will provide the appropriate setting with his talk “Titanic – Mit Physik in den Untergang” (“Titanc – Into doom with physics”) .