Support Excellence Awards: Every contribution counts

Who makes a difference to you? During the Opening of the Academic Year 2026-2027, Machteld Roos, Vice Chair of the Executive Board, announced that the first Support Excellence Awards will be presented during next year’s Opening of the Academic Year.

Big or small, visible or behind the scenes: every contribution counts

The idea for the awards came from Professor Mariëlle Stoelinga, who wanted to create a dedicated stage for the people whose often unseen work is essential to the success of the University of Twente. With these new awards, the Executive Board wants to emphasise that everyone’s contribution matters. Without the work of our support staff, researchers, teachers and students could not do their work. This work deserves to be recognised and celebrated.

The awards consist of an individual award and a team award. Each year, a new theme will be chosen, connected to the UT’s core values and current developments. Every colleague can nominate another colleague or a team, giving everyone the opportunity to recognise and highlight contributions to Team UT.

The theme for the 2027 Support Excellence Awards will be announced during the New Year’s Gathering in 2027, when the nomination page will also open.