Right from the start, the graduates and their guests were welcomed by Camilla Rygaard-Hjalsted, Dean of Sustainability, Diversity, Inclusion, and Talent Development. As Dean of DTU’s PhD schools, she emphasized the exciting and important career paths that lie ahead for the graduates—in research, industry, and society in general.
The dean also emphasized that this year's ceremony marks the 70th anniversary of DTU's first PhD graduates and encouraged today's graduates to be ambassadors for research, technology, and DTU's alumni network.
She highlighted DTU’s development from just two PhD candidates in 1955 to 428 today, and welcomed the great diversity among this year’s graduates:
“We went from 2 candidates to 428—a sea of doctors—in 70 years! You represent all nationalities, genders and every direction within engineering. We are proud of each and every one of you.”
President: “Your research is changing the world”
DTU President Anders O. Bjarklev opened the ceremony with a speech to the new PhD graduates and their networks. He emphasized how the PhD programme requires perseverance, curiosity, and the courage to break new ground, and how the graduates’ research contributes to creating value for society:
“Your research will transform industries, create breakthroughs in medicine and save lives, help reverse the biodiversity crisis, make our energy greener and more secure—and much more. Your research will change the way we live,” said the president in his speech.
The next speaker was this year's guest speaker; Jane Buus Laursen, senior executive in the pharmaceutical industry and former corporate vice president at Novo Nordisk. She holds both a master's degree in chemical engineering and a PhD in organic chemistry from DTU. Throughout her career, she has worked with innovation, strategic alliances, and management in global companies.
Jane Buus Laursen shared her experiences of creating value through research and encouraged the graduates to use their skills to promote innovation and sustainability in society.
Awards for this year's PhDs and supervisor
As part of the celebration, awards were presented to PhDs who have distinguished themselves in research, communication, and teaching:
PhD thesis of the year
The prize for PhD thesis of the year went to Rasmus Dehli from DTU Bioengineering for his thesis on how specific bacteria and their substances can help the immune system learn to tolerate harmless things—and what happens when that process goes wrong. This provides new knowledge about why non-communicable diseases such as allergies and asthma are on the rise globally and points to new opportunities for prevention.
His research has led to two patent applications, and a large biotech company has purchased the rights to the technology. The award comes with a prize of DKK 25,000.
PhD Supervisor of the Year
Each year, PhD graduates can nominate their supervisor for the PhD Supervisor of the Year award. The award comes with a prize of DKK 25,000.
This year, it was awarded to Professor Stephan Sylvest Keller from DTU Nanolab. He was recognized not only for ensuring high academic quality but also for creating a supportive and inspiring environment for his students by being deeply involved in their development, both academically and personally, and for being a driving force in promoting collaboration and innovation.
Young Researcher Award
The award is presented to young researchers who have made an extraordinary effort and demonstrate great potential for further development. The recipients are also recognized for being role models for younger students, acting as mentors and advisors, and actively communicating their research to the public. The award comes with a prize of 15,000 Danish kroner.
The six winners of the Young Researcher Award 2025 are:
- Caroline Gjelstrup from DTU Aqua for her thesis "Changing oceanographic conditions in East Greenland". She has documented major climate changes in East Greenland and their impact on marine ecosystems—with groundbreaking results published in leading journals.
- Ginevra Giangeri from DTU Chemical Engineering for her thesis "Novel approaches for steering microbial interactions in Anaerobic Digestion". She has developed new methods for optimizing bioenergy production through microbiological innovation.
- Xuemeng Chen from DTU Chemistry for her thesis "Photoinduced Enantioselective Functionalization of C(sp3)–H Bonds". She has developed new chemical reactions that may be significant for drug development.
- Emil Njor from DTU Compute for his thesis "Data Aware Embedded Machine Learning". He has developed new methods for machine learning on small devices and has collaborated with both Harvard and industry.
- Ioannis Kountouris from DTU Management for his thesis "Hydrogen as a Pillar of Europe's Energy Transition". His research has been of great importance to the development of Europe's future energy systems.
- Gabriel Guerreiro from DTU Wind for his thesis "Novel Methodologies for Grid Connection Assessment of Wind Power Plants". His work has led to new standards for testing wind power and has already gained industrial significance.
Reception and networking
After the ceremony, the graduates were celebrated with a reception, where they had the opportunity to network across departments and meet DTU’s alumni network.
