University President of the Year:
Prof. Dr. Dabbert among the top three most popular university presidents in Germany [15.06.21]
President of the University of Hohenheim in third place nationwide in the University President Ranking by the German Association of University Professors and Lecturers, just behind the presidents from the Universities of Bonn and Mannheim.
Still in the top league: This year, Prof. Dr. Stephan Dabbert from the University of Hohenheim in Stuttgart is once again one of the most popular university presidents in Germany. The results of this year's ranking were announced on May 31, 2021, by the German Association of University Professors and Lecturers. With a school grade of 1.57 (German scale: 1 is the best, 6 is the worst grade), Prof. Dr. Dabbert was in third place behind Prof. Dr. Thomas Puhl of the University of Mannheim (school grade 1.53) and first-place winner Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Michael Hoch of the University of Bonn (school grade 1.51). This means that Prof. Dr. Dabbert has been consistently in one of the top three places in the ranking since 2015, and even at the top in 2016. In the vote for the “Science Minister of the Year,” State Minister of Science, Research and Arts Theresia Bauer came in third place. Detailed ranking at bit.ly/3p6zs17
"Strongly advocates for the needs of the university. Very transparent communication even of difficult topics." - this is emphasized by one of the comments submitted to the ranking on Prof. Dr. Dabbert. Not only the majority of the comments are positive: 84 percent of the participants attest to him being the "ideal person for the position" or a "very good person for the position.”
The ranking is based on a scale ranging from "ideal person for the position" to "worst possible person for the position." From the evaluations its members, the German Association of University Professors and Lecturers (DHV) determines a ranking using the German school grading system.
For the second time, Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Michael Hoch from the University of Bonn is in first place this year with a school grade of 1.51. In second place is Prof. Dr. Thomas Puhl from the University of Mannheim with 1.53, followed by Prof. Dr. Dabbert with 1.57.
In the election for "Science Minister of the Year 2021," Theresia Bauer, Baden-Württemberg's Science Minister, landed in third place with a score of 2.81. The winner is Prof. Dr. Armin Willingmann, Minister for Economics, Science and Digitalization of the State of Saxony-Anhalt (2.26), followed by last year's winner Katharina Fegebank, Hamburg Senator for Science, Research and Equality, in second place (2.72).
Crises can only be overcome by working together
"I am very pleased about the renewed signal of support from our scientists. I would like to congratulate Prof. Dr. Michael Hoch and Prof. Dr. Thomas Puhl on their success in the DHV ranking," stated Prof. Dr. Dabbert. It is precisely in difficult times that one can see how much solidarity there is at the university. "Situations like the Corona pandemic can only be handled by all of us working together. I am very grateful for this support."
In the past year, the President continued, Hohenheim scientists have demonstrated their creativity and flexibility. "And despite the difficult circumstances, they have not lost sight of other global challenges. After all, topics such as climate protection, preserving biodiversity, and securing the world's food supply are still relevant," emphasized Prof. Dr. Dabbert, "and this applies not least to our lead topic, the bioeconomy."
BACKGROUND: The award “President of the Year”
With the award “President of the Year” (“Rektor des Jahres”), the German Association of University Professors and Lecturers (DHV) honors the model management of the chosen candidate. The DHV is a professional association of scientists and researchers in Germany. The direction and execution of the ranking, which includes 56 universities this year, lies with the Center for Evaluation and Methods (Zentrum für Evaluation und Methoden) at the University of Bonn.
The right to vote is conferred to association members who are personally invited to evaluate the person currently in office at their university. 4,448 researchers and scientists took part in this year’s voting. Only rectors or presidents who had been in office for at least 100 days and received at least 30 ratings were ranked.
The honor “President of the Year” was awarded on 31 May 2021 at the German Science Gala in Berlin. The DHV published the detailed result in the June issue of the journal "Forschung & Lehre", which is available at https://www.hochschulverband.de/fileadmin/redaktion/download/pdf/presse/ranking-dhv_2021.pdf.
More information can be found at https://www.hochschulverband.de
Overview of all winners of the award “President of the Year”:
2021 Prof. Dr. Michael Hoch, University of Bonn
2020 Prof. Dr. Michael Hoch, University of Bonn
2019 Prof. Dr. Lambert Koch, University of Wuppertal
2018 Prof. Dr. Johannes Wessels, University of Münster
2017 Prof. Dr. Lambert Koch, University of Wuppertal
2016 Prof. Dr. Stephan Dabbert, University of Hohenheim
2015 Prof. Dr. Helmut J. Schmidt, TU Kaiserslautern
2014 Prof. Dr. Lambert Koch, University of Wuppertal
2013 Prof. Dr. Jan-Hendrik Olbertz, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin
2012 Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Herrmann, TU München
2011 Prof. Dr. Lambert Koch, University of Wuppertal
2010 Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Schareck, University of Rostock
2009 Prof. Dr. Elmar Weiler, Ruhr-Universität Bochum
Text: Elsner
