Teaching Excellence Awards 2025: nominations open

The University of Basel is demonstrating the importance of good teaching for students with the Teaching Excellence Awards 2025. With three new award categories, the awards aim to highlight the diversity of high-quality teaching in the faculties and to promote the exchange of ideas about good teaching. Faculty, students and staff can nominate and be nominated for the teaching awards until 26 March.

Award categories

The five categories of the awards reflect the many facets of good teaching:

• Engaging Courses: The university needs lecturers who inspire and motivate students. Nominations may be submitted for lecturers who connect to a wide variety of students and create a welcoming learning environment.
• Strong Foundations: Clearly conveyed fundamentals provide guidance and facilitate entry into the subject. Nominations may be submitted for lecturers whose teaching enables students to acquire essential competencies and to prepare well for assessments.
• Collaboration and Interaction: Learning in exchange with others opens up new perspectives and contributes to the development of communication and teamwork skills. Nominations may be submitted for lecturers who offer particularly interactive courses and actively foster collaboration.
• Supporting Learning (Credit Suisse Award for Best Teaching, funded by the now-defunct Credit Suisse Foundation): Certain courses—tutorials, practicals, exercises, proseminars, etc.—support students in their learning process. Nominations may be submitted for teaching assistants and students who meet learners at their current level, building bridges to subject matter and fellow students.
• Service to Teaching: Students and lecturers benefit enormously from a supportive environment. Nominations may be submitted for members of the university—staff, (student) associations, (coordination) offices, and more—who contribute to creating an enjoyable and smooth study experience.

The university as a learning community

The University of Basel sees itself as a vibrant learning community where faculty, students and staff work together to create a stimulating academic environment. The award categories reflect this shared responsibility by emphasizing the importance of interaction, motivation and support as essential aspects of study. The Teaching Excellence Awards recognize the many facets of learning and teaching that together form an inspiring and productive academic community.

Nominations and adjudication

A multi-stage procedure is in place to select the award winners. Three nominations, giving compelling, illustrative and clear reasons, are all it takes for someone to be considered for a teaching award. Detailed information about the juries and the criteria for each award can be found on the Teaching Excellence Awards website.

Public award ceremony

The public award ceremony for the Teaching Excellence Awards 2025 will be held in Kollegienhaus on 19 May at 5 pm. All members of the University community are welcome to attend.