Here’s what it’s all about:
The SRH Campus Leipzig now has an officially recognised ‘Student Branch’ of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). It thus joins the ranks of renowned institutions such as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Stanford University and ETH Zurich. With over 400,000 members in more than 160 countries, the IEEE is the world’s largest professional organisation for engineers and computer scientists. International technology standards such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and USB are developed here.
✨ Establishing an IEEE Student Branch is considered a demanding accreditation process: factors assessed include the academic focus of the degree programmes, the qualifications of the supervising professors and the institutional requirements of the university. In Germany, there are currently only 14 such Student Branches, and so far these have been located exclusively at state-funded technical universities. SRH University, with its Leipzig campus, is therefore the only private university in Germany with a recognised IEEE Student Branch.
It is particularly noteworthy that this success was achieved in just the second year since the campus was founded. The commitment of Prof. Dr Klaus Schwarz and his IEEE team was instrumental in this: Daniil Tashkan, Vladyslav Stupak, Yamini Ravi, Emilijus Kanapeckas, Nikola Nachevski and Meenakshy Kattungal Roshan. Daniil Tashkan played a particularly significant role in this success. Through his tireless efforts, initiative and dedication, he has been instrumental in driving the development of the Student Branch forward; without him, this milestone would not have been possible. The active involvement of the students, who, amongst other things, have produced academic publications and attended international conferences, has also contributed significantly to this shared success.
The fact that the Student Branch has long been a vibrant community was also evident at the first IEEE Hackathon held on the Leipzig campus on 6 June 2026. Around 40 students took part in the event – a success on a scale that even the organising team had not anticipated. Working in teams or as individuals, they developed creative reimagining of well-known retro games such as Pac-Man, Flappy Bird and Snake, demonstrating their technical skills, creativity and flair for good design.
The projects were judged on criteria such as technical implementation, ingenuity and design. The top three teams were awarded retro consoles and snack hampers. In addition, a Community Award was presented to the project voted as the favourite by all participants. The quality of the games developed and the enthusiasm on the day made the hackathon a resounding success.
As well as exciting challenges, refreshments were also provided: over pizza and drinks, there were plenty of opportunities to chat and network. It is particularly important to the IEEE team that all students feel welcome, regardless of whether they are already members or not.
✨The Student Branch sees itself not only as a community, but also as an open initiative for anyone on campus with an interest in technology.
Following this successful launch, further events are already being planned, including a literature café with a workshop. The aim of the IEEE Student Branch is to organise regular events in future, thereby offering students a constant stream of new opportunities to learn, network and try out new things. This gives students direct access to a global network, specialist journals and international conferences – and thus to an environment that is in high demand within the technology sector.
