On May 17, the Media University campus in Berlin was transformed into a place of celebration, pride and great emotion. This year’s graduates from the various departments were honored for their outstanding achievements in the theater hall.
The ceremony was opened by a speech from the Director of Academic Affairs, Prof. Dr. Lorenz Pöllmann, who expressed his respect and appreciation for the graduates. In his speech, he emphasized the importance of critical thinking, empathy, cooperation and the courage to break new ground.
This was followed by the award ceremony for the students from the Faculty of Business, which was conducted by Prof. Dr. Ingo Knuth, Prof. Dr. Thomas Petzold and Lorena Zurilov. Special mention was made of Leon Heidemann, who was awarded the prize for the best Bachelor’s thesis. His innovative thesis entitled “The role of Web 3.0 technology in promoting sustainability at festivals: An investigation into the impact of tokenization of festival operations on sustainable behaviour and visitor engagement” was met with great interest and impressively demonstrated how technological innovations can contribute to the promotion of sustainable event formats.
Pamela Gutierrez Fernandez received the award for the best Master’s thesis in the field of economics. Her thesis “Echoes of the Past: The Influence of Vintage Hits on Contemporary Culture in the Digital Era” sheds light on the influence of musical nostalgia on today’s digital culture and offers fascinating insights into current consumer and media trends.
The Department of Psychology honored its graduates on stage under the direction of Prof. Dr. Christian Hoffmann. The best Bachelor’s thesis was written by Ines Breedijk. In her study, she investigated the connection between self-management and academic procrastination – a highly topical subject that not only affects students, but is also highly relevant to the modern working world.
Max Landerer received the prize for the best Master’s thesis in the Department of Psychology for his work “Trust Calibration in Responsible Healthcare AI: Enhancing Symptom Assessments for Individuals with Mental Health”. His research makes an important contribution to the improvement of AI-based diagnostic systems in healthcare and strengthens trust in responsible technological solutions.
In the Department of Journalism and Communication, the students received their awards from Prof. Bettina Gneisz Al-Ani, Prof. Dr. Sebastian Köhler and Prof. Dr. Markus Ziener. The prize for the best Bachelor’s thesis went to Elias Jakob for his empirical analysis “On selected aspects of the journalistic presentation of the Ukraine war in the ARD talk show ‘maischberger’ – An empirical analysis of the balance and diversity of the discussions”.
Natalia Zapata received an award in the Digital Journalism Master’s program for her outstanding thesis “Between Risk and Resilience: The Strategies of Female Reporters in Conflict Zones”. Her research sheds light on the courageous women who work as journalists under extreme conditions.
Paulo Sebastian Villani received the prize for the best Master’s thesis in the Public Relations and Digital Marketing course for his work “Beyond numbers: Key factors for effective ESG communication to enhance corporate value”.
The Department of Design honored its graduates under the direction of Prof. Dr. Andine Müller and Prof. Dr. Jan-Henning Raff. The best Bachelor’s thesis was written by Merima Omerovic, who impressively analyzed the creative power of surrealism in the fashion world in her work “Surrealist Photography as a Phenomenon and its Use as a Marketing Tool in the Fashion Industry”.
The best Master’s thesis went to Anan Mahmoud and Vera Schmid for their visionary work “I’ll have what you’re feeling: A speculative space that materializes emotions in a future where feelings are undetectable”.
After the ceremony, Luisa von Schwander, alumna of the Media University, gave the inspiring graduation speech. In moving words, she thanked the lecturers and staff for their tireless support and encouraged the graduates to courageously shape their future.
The grand finale was the traditional hat toss photo, in which the sky above the campus was filled with flying hats. Afterwards, the new alumni invited their families and friends on a tour of the campus, which included a visit to the new co-working spaces.
A day full of success stories, moving moments and the certainty that the future is in the best hands.
