RWU Rector nominated for the “University Manager of the Year” award

Great recognition for Ravensburg-Weingarten University of Applied Sciences (RWU): its Rector, Professor Dr. Thomas Spägele, has been nominated for the “University Manager of the Year 2025” award. The prestigious prize is awarded annually by the Center for Higher Education Development (CHE) in cooperation with the weekly newspaper DIE ZEIT.

The award recognizes outstanding leadership achievements at German universities. From over 400 state universities, a multi-stage selection process was used to identify the 20 institutions that have made particularly significant progress in recent years - including in the areas of research, teaching, internationalization, transfer, quality assurance and university profile.

“This strengthens our perception in the political and scientific environment”

“It makes us very proud to be one of the 20 nominated universities,” says RWU Chancellor Henning Rudewig. “The nomination alone strengthens our perception in the political and academic environment and is proof of RWU's positive development in recent years.” Rector Spägele also emphasizes the joint achievement: "Even though one name is on the list, it is absolutely clear that this recognition applies to the entire university. To be nominated as a comparatively small university in a rural area in such a strong, Germany-wide scientific environment is already a special distinction."

The final selection is made by an independent jury based on qualitative assessments and quantitative university indicators. In the past two years, the President of the Catholic University of Eichstätt-Ingolstadt and the President of the Technical University of Munich have been honored. The award is one of the few nationwide formats that specifically focuses on and makes visible leadership achievements in the higher education sector.