Unfolding potential beyond what is measurable: KU welcomes new students at semester start

With a view to the current conflicts and wars, Cardinal Marx had appealed earlier during the in the church service for the start of the semester: "A university must be a place of enlightenment and help for critical thinking. A Catholic university helps, through the Gospel, to see more deeply, to hope more energetically, to dialog reconciliatory and to bring sciences into conversation with each other – on the basis that all people have equal dignity." Compared to 30 years ago, he said, the world has become more uncertain and fundamentalism has increased. But it is precisely fundamentalism that is not to be found in the gospel: "The biblical notion is that every human being is the image of God. Individual rights are a foundation of our civilization."

KU President Prof. Dr. Gabriele Gien described in her welcoming speech that it is a special concern of the KU to "awaken in students their abilities that lie beyond what is measurable". Moreover, the world's problems cannot be solved from the perspective of individual subject areas, she said, so interdisciplinary exchange is also of particular importance at the KU, which aims to bring society and science into dialog with each other. Teaching at the Catholic University, she said, is deliberately shaped by new formats that take into account individual skills and abilities in problem solving. This is also reflected in the wide-ranging commitment of its students.

Referring to Cardinal Marx's address, Prof. Dr. Klaus Meier, Vice President for Studies and Teaching, described that today, we can observe a lot of polarization and quick judgments without having dealt with a topic in depth and breadth: "Here, you will learn that scientific rigor is the way to develop a body of scientific evidence and then be able to discuss and argue well. There is no such thing as knowledge par excellence, but we are all on a continuous path." What distinguishes the KU’s students is that they think critically, want to think in contexts and have the next generation in mind.

On behalf of the city of Eichstätt, Mayor Josef Grienberger welcomed the new students and emphasized that the community is a priority in the city. "This city is characterized by the fact that every citizen can get involved in a wide variety of ways. We want to make this offer to you as well", said Grienberger, addressing the new students. For the challenges of the time could not be mastered by the state alone, but solutions would have to be sought together. Grienberger reports that the KU and the city cooperate in a variety of ways to explore and promote the conditions of commitment. The speakers of the Student Representative Council also promoted the many opportunities for getting involved within the University and presented the tasks of the student council.