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Nima Nami awarded President’s Medal for Citizenship

Bachelor in Business Administration graduate Nima Nami was named winner of the 2024 KLU President’s Medal for Citizenship, which recognizes outstanding student engagement at the university. Lauded for his dependability, generosity, and commitment as a student ambassador and student club member and founder, Nami was presented with the medal and its €1,000 endowment at this year’s graduation ceremony.

Class representative, student ambassador and spokesperson, member of the student-led consultancy Advisupply, Social Events Committee president, founder of the Chess Club – Nima Nami’s extensive and dedicated student engagement made him a worthy winner of the President’s medal, remarked KLU President Andreas Kaplan when presenting the 22-year-old with the award.

“Nima has shown exceptional dedication to his peers, someone who has not only been deeply involved in extracurricular activities but has also worked tirelessly to foster a strong sense of community among the student body,” said Prof. Kaplan at the Elbe Philharmonic Hall, where the graduation ceremony took place.

 “He is known for his remarkable reliability, selflessness and commitment, always putting the student experience first without seeking the spotlight, and this is also my impression.”

Nami, who hails from Evaz in Iran, spoke afterwards of his pride at receiving the medal. “It was nice to see my work and effort be recognized. I always did the events because they were fun for me, but to actually see how much impact it had and how many people enjoyed them was like the cherry on top.”

A Chance to Do Something Different

A new student in a new city and part of a bachelor class that started during the Covid pandemic in 2021, Nami said he initially went through “some adversities and doubts during my studies”, but that the journey was eased through extracurricular clubs and events offered by KLU.

“These activities weren’t just a chance to relax and take a break from studying, but a chance to do something different,” he explained. “They were also my way of meeting new people, and not just KLU students, but exchange students, professors and staff. KLU’s close knit community has been the greatest form of support. We check in on one another and always lend a hand both in our studies and in life.”

Engagement from Fundraising to KLU’s First Chess Club

This consideration, helpfulness, and generosity of time and effort was amply demonstrated by Nami during his studies at KLU. As the president of KLU’s Social Events Committee, he helped organize social highlights such as a casino-themed evening which raised over 500 euros for charity. Working with Advisupply, he was a part of a project to enhance user experience on the KLU website. Together with fellow student Laurids Nittka, he formed the university’s first chess club. He participated in online marketing videos and promoted the university at school visits and education fairs as a student ambassador. In his spare time, he tutored his classmates in math.

Better Together

“I learned that it's easier to go through challenges if you're in the company of others, so it's always good to meet new people, make friends and do things together as opposed to doing it alone,” he remarked. “I started becoming socially engaged at KLU by doing a marketing video for Instagram. This was me going out of my comfort zone because I had never done something like this before. After a filming for a while, I actually enjoyed the process. Then I started putting on events and it was really fun for me to see other people enjoying them, getting together and creating this community.”

As for the future, Nami is looking for a job in Hamburg and is open to different opportunities.

“I’d like to work in project management in consultancy or logistics,” he said. “Once I have a stable income, I would like to work on a startup idea I have and then we'll see how it goes from there.”

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