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CompEng Graduate Koussay Daadouch Is Awarded as Best RUB Graduate of the Year

2022-12-13

Koussayx

Koussay Daadouch completed his Computational Engineering Master's degree this year. With his extraordinary academic performance, he was honoured as the best graduate of the RUB during this academic year.

M.Sc. Daadouch completed his Master’s thesis with the Collaborative Research Center 837 „Interaction Modeling in Mechanized Tunneling” (SFB 837) under the supervision of Prof. Meschke. After submitting, he immediately started his PhD in the SFB 837. We from CompEng warmly congratulate him for his achievements!

We have talked to M.Sc. Daadouch about his studies and his career plans.

Who did you tell first when you heard that you are awarded the best graduate of the university this year?

When I received the email, I immediately called my wife Sara. She deserves to be the first one to know as she has never stopped believing in me, and she always supports me and stands by my side.

Why did you choose the CompEng Master’s program?

I have always been keen on computational methods during my undergraduate studies; however, at that time, I did not know that such programs, fully dedicated towards the field of computational mechanics, exist. Therefore, I was planning to apply for a typical master program in civil engineering when I came across CompEng. I read about it and liked it immediately. Moreover, many friends of mine who study in North Rhine-Westphalia told me nothing but good things about the region, Bochum and most importantly RUB, which made my decision very clear.

What did you expect before coming to Germany and starting your Master at RUB? Were your expectations fulfilled?

From the academic point of view my expectations were high. I knew that this is a highly demanding program with a lot to offer. And indeed, my expectations were on point. I had the opportunity to learn a lot from CompEng. The teaching staff are incredibly motivated to teach as well as being up to date with the current research and technologies. Moreover, aside from the traditional passive learning, many interesting teaching methods are being used which makes learning far more effective. Lastly, I must acknowledge that my favorite aspect about CompEng is the modularity and wide range of courses one can choose from. This allows students to focus on the fields of interest and take the time to finish the program on their own pace.
On the other hand, this was my first experience of living abroad and leaving my home city Damascus, hence, I did not know what to expect. However, I would say it has been a pleasant experience. Aside from minor unavoidable challenges, I had no problems adapting to the new life. Bochum is a very student-friendly city, and the university provides a lot of guidance and welcoming activities. Not to mention of course the CompEng support office, the student council and Mr. Sahlmen, who helped us students extensively.

What is your favorite CompEng memory?

In normal times I would have said that my favorite memory is an excursion or a nice lecture. Unfortunately, our study period came along with the pandemic, so 3 out of 4 semesters had to be “online”, not to mention that excursion and trips were out of question due to lockdowns. Ironically, my favorite time is definitely the lockdown. Since I was living in a dorm with most of my CompEng colleagues, we had nothing else to do but to do together. We were eating together, going out for walks or bike rides, hanging out, doing sports, partying, celebrating birthdays, playing games, and organizing LAN parties. We were not colleagues anymore, but friends.

What have you been doing since graduation?

I did my master’s thesis, for which I won this prize, at the Structural Mechanics department. I liked the topic very much, thus, I applied for a PhD position at the same department to continue working further in the same field. Therefore, since the end of 2021 I have been working as a research assistant at the Structural Mechanics department by Prof. Meschke. My main area of focus is modelling concrete on several scales to simulate its fracture response.

We would like to thank M.Sc. Koussay Daadouch for this interview. We wish him all the best for his future career.

 

Christina Rauch, Assistant Coordinator

Koussayx

Koussay Daadouch completed his Computational Engineering Master's degree this year. With his extraordinary academic performance, he was honoured as the best graduate of the RUB during this academic year.

M.Sc. Daadouch completed his Master’s thesis with the Collaborative Research Center 837 „Interaction Modeling in Mechanized Tunneling” (SFB 837) under the supervision of Prof. Meschke. After submitting, he immediately started his PhD in the SFB 837. We from CompEng warmly congratulate him for his achievements!

We have talked to M.Sc. Daadouch about his studies and his career plans.

Who did you tell first when you heard that you are awarded the best graduate of the university this year?

When I received the email, I immediately called my wife Sara. She deserves to be the first one to know as she has never stopped believing in me, and she always supports me and stands by my side.

Why did you choose the CompEng Master’s program?

I have always been keen on computational methods during my undergraduate studies; however, at that time, I did not know that such programs, fully dedicated towards the field of computational mechanics, exist. Therefore, I was planning to apply for a typical master program in civil engineering when I came across CompEng. I read about it and liked it immediately. Moreover, many friends of mine who study in North Rhine-Westphalia told me nothing but good things about the region, Bochum and most importantly RUB, which made my decision very clear.

What did you expect before coming to Germany and starting your Master at RUB? Were your expectations fulfilled?

From the academic point of view my expectations were high. I knew that this is a highly demanding program with a lot to offer. And indeed, my expectations were on point. I had the opportunity to learn a lot from CompEng. The teaching staff are incredibly motivated to teach as well as being up to date with the current research and technologies. Moreover, aside from the traditional passive learning, many interesting teaching methods are being used which makes learning far more effective. Lastly, I must acknowledge that my favorite aspect about CompEng is the modularity and wide range of courses one can choose from. This allows students to focus on the fields of interest and take the time to finish the program on their own pace.
On the other hand, this was my first experience of living abroad and leaving my home city Damascus, hence, I did not know what to expect. However, I would say it has been a pleasant experience. Aside from minor unavoidable challenges, I had no problems adapting to the new life. Bochum is a very student-friendly city, and the university provides a lot of guidance and welcoming activities. Not to mention of course the CompEng support office, the student council and Mr. Sahlmen, who helped us students extensively.

What is your favorite CompEng memory?

In normal times I would have said that my favorite memory is an excursion or a nice lecture. Unfortunately, our study period came along with the pandemic, so 3 out of 4 semesters had to be “online”, not to mention that excursion and trips were out of question due to lockdowns. Ironically, my favorite time is definitely the lockdown. Since I was living in a dorm with most of my CompEng colleagues, we had nothing else to do but to do together. We were eating together, going out for walks or bike rides, hanging out, doing sports, partying, celebrating birthdays, playing games, and organizing LAN parties. We were not colleagues anymore, but friends.

What have you been doing since graduation?

I did my master’s thesis, for which I won this prize, at the Structural Mechanics department. I liked the topic very much, thus, I applied for a PhD position at the same department to continue working further in the same field. Therefore, since the end of 2021 I have been working as a research assistant at the Structural Mechanics department by Prof. Meschke. My main area of focus is modelling concrete on several scales to simulate its fracture response.

We would like to thank M.Sc. Koussay Daadouch for this interview. We wish him all the best for his future career.

 

Christina Rauch, Assistant Coordinator