University of Groningen puts excellent students in the spotlight

Who were the best students at the University of Groningen this year? The GUF-100 prizes will be awarded to nine outstanding students (one from each faculty) during this year’s traditional Summer Ceremony on Friday 4 July. One of these students will be chosen as the most outstanding, and also presented with the Aart Bosman Student Excellence Award . In addition to the prizes for the best students, the Gratama Science Award winner will also be announced. The Summer Ceremony marks the official end of the academic year and can be watched live on the University of Groningen website.

Former students become international University of Groningen ambassadors

The Summer Ceremony will be attended by 150 international graduates of 34 different nationalities. The gathering will mark their graduation and the end of their time in Groningen. A selected group of International Alumni Ambassadors have been trained to represent the University of Groningen at official events in their home countries. They will be presented with their certificates during the Summer Ceremony. One of their tasks for the forthcoming year is to support the University with international marketing activities for prospective students. They will act as contact people and country advisors for the University of Groningen, contribute to strategic collaboration proposals with foreign universities and other organizations and join or initiate alumni networks.

GUF-100 and Aart Bosman Student Excellence Award

The GUF-100 prizes for outstanding students were first awarded in 1993, to mark the centenary of the Groningen University Fund (GUF). Until two years ago, the prizes were awarded at every 5-year anniversary, but in 2010 the GUF and the Board of the University decided to present them every year. The prize consists of a scholarship for study or research, and is presented to the most outstanding student from each faculty.

The University of Groningen Student Excellence Award was first presented in 2009 in honour of the founding of the University of Groningen Honours College. The winner of the Groningen University Student Excellence Award is chosen from the winners of the GUF-100 prizes. The prize was renamed the Aart Bosman Student Excellence Award in 2014.

Prize-winners are given a scholarship worth €2500, to be spent on academic study or research, preferably abroad. The most outstanding student wins receives another €2500.

Gratama Science Award

The Gratama Science Award is an incentive prize for up-and-coming scientists from the universities of Leiden and Groningen, who distinguish themselves with innovative, socially relevant and high-profile research. The prize is awarded for research largely or wholly carried out at the universities of Leiden or Groningen, during a period of a maximum of five years after obtaining a PhD.