In view of the progressive spread of the corona virus and the associated effects on society, RWTH Aachen University has decided to cancel the festivities for its 150th birthday this year. “We find ourselves in a difficult situation where none of us feels like celebrating. There are much more important things than the birthday of our university”, explains the university’s rector, Professor Ulrich Rüdiger.
Even RWTH’s “Science Evening” in Berlin on 11 March 2020 did not take place. Now the university management and the anniversary steering committee have decided to cancel all further events for the current year. All other centrally organized RWTH events have also been cancelled for the coming months, including the university’s graduate party on September 5, 2020.
A later version of the anniversary events under the motto “Lernen. Forschen. Machen.” will be scheduled at another time, when the crisis situation is more manageable. Corresponding plans will be announced in due course. It has already been decided that the joint anniversary exhibition of the City of Aachen and RWTH, which was to be opened on 15 May 2020 at the Centre Charlemagne, will be postponed until winter semester 2021/22.