The Honors Academy offers talented students the opportunity to work further on their own areas of interest, creating their own challenges and reaching for higher achievements. The aim is to inspire these excellent students and to encourage and support them in developing their talents.

The Academy currently offers six tracks, each focusing on one of the Sirius recognition and new director for Honors AcademyStrategic Areas or on one of the TU/e multidisciplinary research domains. Students will follow the Honors Academy track, which represents thirty study points, alongside their own Bachelor’s programs. TU/e aims for a greater participation in the Honors Academy, with at least seven percent of the second-year students. This is a performance agreement between TU/e and the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science, together with recognition under the Sirius Program.

As director of the Honors Academy, Paul Koenraad will work on its further expansion and development. The Academy recently received formal Sirius recognition for its excellence programs. TU/e’s ambition is through the Honors Academy to prepare students for scientific, social and personal leadership roles. In addition, TU/e aims through the program to gain experience with new educational concepts and to look for opportunities to introduce these new forms of education in its regular programs.

In the view of the Sirius Expert Committee, the TU/e proposal shows a ‘strong and structured university-wide approach’, the university has a ‘clear vision of excellence’, and has ‘clearly formulated the demand-related nature of the excellence program.’ As scientific director, Koenraad will work closely together with the present coordinators and inspirers of the six tracks in the Honors Academy and the leadership of the Bachelor College.

Koenraad has since 2007 been professor in the Applied Physics department in the field of Semiconductor Nanophysics. He has since 2003 been overall coordinator of the TU/e Minor program, is Director of Education at the COBRA research school, and since last year has been responsible for the Photonics Graduate School which is recognized by NWO (Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research).

Source: TU/e press team