They come from Bremen, Germany, Europe and all over the world: the new students at Hochschule Bremen – more than 2,100 of them this semester. At the beginning of November 2025, the traditional welcome ceremony was held for them at the town hall. They received a warm, friendly and humorous welcome from the university management, student representatives and the two HSB choirs. One of the highlights was again the presentation of the DAAD Prize. This year, it was awarded to Sannae Kapoor. Born in India, she is studying for an MBA in European/Asian Management at the HSB's International Graduate Centre.
‘We come from different cities, regions and countries, and we have different social and cultural backgrounds,’ said President Prof. Dr Konrad Wolf in his speech. Regardless of one’s origin, religion or worldview, and regardless of one’s gender identity, ‘what matters to us is respectful and mindful coexistence,’ said the President. ‘We want you to feel at home here and be able to develop freely in your student life.’
HSB is an internationally oriented university. Students can experience this internationality not only through semesters abroad. HSB is one of the few universities of applied sciences in Germany that is allowed to call itself a European University. ‘We are proud of this,’ said the President. As part of the STARS EU Alliance, students also have the opportunity to experience international learning formats at a total of nine partner universities across Europe, from Sweden to Tenerife.
Student life also includes participation in various committees. Lena Reinhardt, member of the AStA executive committee, and Jannes Kleinstäuber, president of the student council, welcomed all students and encouraged them to get involved in their studies, try new things and help shape the university.
Sannae Kapoor from the International Graduate Centre at HSB received great recognition at the event. The 30-year-old was awarded the DAAD Prize during the event. Sannae Kapoor is not only a student with excellent grades. In her free time, the 30-year-old volunteers at the Sikh Association of Germany. There, the young woman cooks and distributes food to people in need in Hamburg and Bremen. Sannae Kapoor also works for the German-Indian Society. Yoga has had a profound influence on her outlook on life and plays an important role in her everyday routine. The student offers courses as a yoga teacher. Sannae Kapoor also enjoys the Indian film industry Bollywood and has already held a workshop on this topic at the IGC of the University of Bremen. For this extraordinary commitment, she has now received the DAAD Prize 2025 – and gave a dance performance to thunderous applause in front of an audience at the town hall.
Read the press release on the DAAD Prize 2025 from HSB.
