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Young academic Frederik Kieslich wins VDI-IHK senior prize!
Frederik Kieslich wins the VDI-IHK Upper School Prize 2025 for his outstanding specialist work at the Rivius Gymnasium in Attendorn.
Young academic Frederik Kieslich wins VDI-IHK senior prize!
The competition for the VDI-IHK upper school prize recently took place in the heart of Attendorn, on the Aquatherm campus. A total of 22 talented applicants competed against each other after the seven best students advanced to the final. Among them was Frederik Kieslich, a former student of Rivius Gymnasium, who won first place. He can now look forward to an impressive prize money of 3,000 euros. LocalPlus reports that the competition opened with a celebratory start and musical contributions from the young choir “Schön(au)er Klang”.
The presentation of the work was the heart of the competition, in which Frederik Kieslich presented his specialist work entitled “Optimization of the syntheses of polycyclic, saturated and platonic hydrocarbons, more precisely cage compounds, using the example of a synthesis stage of the molecule cubane and subsequent analytical evaluation”. This work was created as part of the advanced chemistry course 2024 in collaboration with the University of Siegen under the scientific direction of Prof. Dr. Heiko Ihmels. Thanks to the successful combination of experimental chemistry and analytical evaluation, he achieved the highest grade of 15 points.
The honored talents and award ceremony
The prize money was provided by Gustav Hensel GmbH and Aquatherm. In addition to first place, the other finalists were also taken care of. Places two to seven were awarded prizes ranging from 500 to 2,400 euros. The commitment of the participants was also recognized. The award ceremony took place in a celebratory setting and was attended by Dr. Christine Tretow moderates. The mayor and city of Attendorn sent congratulations on behalf of the city to the participants and award winners.
The VDI-IHK Upper School Prize has been awarded since 2013 and highlights the outstanding scientific skills of the participating students. Papers from the subjects of physics, chemistry, mathematics, biology, computer science or professional courses are permitted for participation. These should have a practical connection to everyday life or to companies, and the award winners come from various schools in the Siegen-Wittgenstein and Olpe districts. IHK Siegen informs that a total of 9,000 euros in prize money will be awarded, making the competition an attractive opportunity for young scientists to show and reward their talents.
A look into the past shows how important this price has become. Last year, Tim Saßmannshausen from the Stift Keppel high school in Hilchenbach won with an innovative work on the digitization of a forest nature trail. This highlights the diversity of topics covered by the upper level award. VDI emphasizes that the best work always shows new, creative solutions and a high level of research spirit on the part of the students. This year, the participants once again impressively demonstrated that the future of the natural sciences is in good hands.