Best Teaching Awards

Source: https://www.tuwien.at/en/studies/teaching-at-tu-wien/best-teaching-awards Parent: https://www.tuwien.at/en/studies/teaching-at-tu-wien

Best Teaching Awards - Casting a Spotlight on Teachers

At TU Wien, motivated and inspiring lecturers teach 26,000 students in over 2,000 courses every semester.

It is time to say THANK YOU for this! Not only by the university, but also by students, who once again had the opportunity to shine the spotlight on teachers and courses that have particularly inspired them in the 2024/25 academic year.

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Best Teaching Awards 2025

What are the Best Teaching Awards?

Nominations

Who can be nominated?

Best Teacher Award: All TUW lecturers who have taught courses in the 2024/25 academic year (winter semester 2024/25 and summer semester 2025). Teachers who won the prize in 2024 cannot be nominated again in 2025.
Best Lecture Award and Best Gender-Sensitive Teaching Award: Courses held in the academic year 2024/25. Courses that already won a prize in 2024 and those that start after the end of the nomination phase cannot be nominated in 2025.

Who can nominate?

All students and TU members are invited to nominate lecturers and courses that have left a positive impression on them. Three votes can be cast per person - one in each category.

Even though students experience teaching most directly, it is important to the Rectorate that teaching at TU Wien is perceived from a variety of perspectives. Therefore, all TU Wien members are given the opportunity to nominate exceptionally committed lecturers.

How does the 2025 nomination procedure work?

Nominations can be submitted from 22 April to 22 May 2025 after logging in via TISS.

The nomination is made using a free text field and a scoring system.

In the free text field, you should describe the special features of the teacher/lecture, which should be illustrated by two (or more) examples. Creative and concise answers are welcome. These will also be read out at the award ceremony on 9 October 2025.

The points system comprises eight (Best Teaching Award, Best Lecture Award), that is four (Gender-Sensitive Teaching Award) categories, which relate to various aspects of excellent teaching. A maximum of ten points can be awarded per category. The total nominations create an individual strengths profile, which is considered when selecting the award winners.

Selection of the Award Winners

The award winners are selected on the basis of their individual strengths profile in combination with the number of nominations. The number of nominations is set in relation to the size of the course(s) held. This ensures that the chances are the same for all courses, regardless of whether they are large lectures or seminars. The respective category winners are selected based on the overall result of the quantitative and qualitative assessments.

The winners are selected by a jury. The jury is made up of experts from various subject areas in order to take all aspects of outstanding teaching into account:

Prof. Dr.-Ing. Jens Schneider - Rector of the TUW
Mag.a iur. Dr.in iur. Jasmin Gründling-Riener - Vice Rector for Academic Affairs
Dipl.-Ing.in Dr.in techn. Shabnam Tauböck - Center for Strategic Development in Education
Christoph Brunner, MSc - Student Support
ORin Mag.a rer.nat. Martina Schönerklee - Didactics in Higher Education
Dipl.-Ing. Mag.rer.soc.oec. Dr.techn. Gergely Rakoczi - Digital Teaching and Learning
Dipl.-Ing.in Dr.in techn. Brigitte Ratzer - Gender Competence
Representatives of the Austrian National Union of Students at TU Wien (HTU)

Prize Money

Each prize is endowed with EUR 5,000. Prizewinners can use the funds according to applicable guidelines for various teaching-related purposes, such as hiring tutors or study assistants, purchasing literature or infrastructure, pursuing personal further education, attending subject-related conferences, or supporting their own staff in these areas.

Timeline

Nominations can be carried out between:

22 April 2025 to 22 May 2025 in TISS

The Best Teaching Awards ceremony takes place on:\ Thursday, 9 October 2025 at the Kuppelsaal.

The Owl

The trophies of the Best Teaching Awards of TU Wien are "made by and for TUW". The "owl" was designed and manufactured at TU Wien.

Design: Dr. Shabnam Tauböck (Center for Strategic Development in Education)
3D printing at TU Wien in BronzeFill: Lecturer Dipl.-Ing. Dr.techn. Arko Steinwender (Institute of Management Sciences)
Plinth, cast in concrete: Senior Scientist Dipl.-Ing. Dr.techn. Johannes Kirnbauer (Research Unit of Building Materials). This year, the plinths are made from cement with a particularly low clinker content and therefore also a low GWP (Global Warming Potential, a measure of the material's CO2 footprint), to which biochar (e.g. charcoal or coal from grain husks, etc.) is added. Biochar has a negative (!) GWP, i.e. it can completely offset the CO2 footprint.

You can get a more detailed insight into the production of the trophies in the video.

Green Meeting

Help us make this event sustainable and environmentally friendly! Together we set an example: Our commitment goes far beyond theory. Because when it comes to realising sustainability goals, every single active contribution counts.

How you can contribute:

Use the collection bins provided for PET, glass, paper, metal, batteries and other waste. Ensure that waste is separated correctly.
Use digital materials and documents wherever possible instead of paper printouts.
Make sure you use water economically, especially when using sanitary facilities.
Only take as much food as you can actually eat in order to avoid food waste.
Use sustainable and environmentally friendly materials for your presentations and other activities.

Information on climate-friendly travel

1. Travelling by train

Please travel to the event by public transport! Using public transport is a CO2-saving and convenient way to reach the event venue. Please find below the timetable information of three federal railways:

2. Travelling by public transport

The venue “Kuppelsaal” is located in the centre of Vienna and is characterised by very good, barrier-free connections to the public transport network and the availability of disabled-friendly sanitary facilities. Please read our Accessibility Statement.

Tram 1, 62, BB, Resselgasse stop: The venue is only a 3-minute walk away.
Underground line: U2, U4, U1, stop Karlsplatz: The venue is only a 4-minute walk away.
Bus line 4a stop Karlsplatz: The venue is only a 3-minute walk away.

We are constantly endeavouring to further improve the barrier-free usability of our premises.

You can find the Wiener Linien timetable here.
You can also use the VOR route planner or google maps to plan your journey.

3. Travelling by bike

Cycling guests are very welcome! There is a bicycle parking facility with sufficient parking spaces in the immediate vicinity.

You can find a route planner specifically for cycling in Vienna here.
General tips for cycling in Vienna can be found here.
You can find information about the Wiener Linien bike sharing service here.

4. Travelling on foot

The venue is centrally located and within walking distance of many hotels.

5. Travelling by car

If you are dependent on a car, we recommend using the Park & Ride facilities on the outskirts of the city. Please note that there are short-stay parking zones throughout Vienna until 10 pm. You can find an overview of Park & Ride car parks here.

Accommodation

The complete list of eco-labelled hotels in the immediate vicinity, which are in cooperation with the TUW, can be found here. We kindly ask you to take advantage of the environmentally friendly offers of your hotel and to help reduce and separate waste both in the hotel and during the event. If possible, please consider online registrations.

Green Meeting Representative

If you have any questions about our Green Meeting, our Green Meeting Representative, Mr Dejan Mihajlovic, will be happy to provide you with information by e-mail at dejan.mihajlovic@tuwien.ac.at or on site.

Previous Award Ceremonies