More awards for the Student House

The shower of awards for the TU Braunschweig Student House centre continues. The building, designed by Gustav Düsing and Max Hacke, has now been honoured with the Nike architecture prize from the Association of German Architects. It won the ‘Nike for Education’.

Das Student House of TU Braunschweig. Picture credits: Kristina Rottig/TU Braunschweig

The BDA’s highest architecture prize, which is awarded every three years, is based on nominations from the BDA regional associations, which generally nominate the prize-winning projects from their own award procedures for the ‘Nike’. This makes these projects visible beyond the region.

“The Student House is complex in design and yet has a pleasantly minimalist feel. The young architects from the university environment have succeeded in the art of creating high quality with reduced means,” said the jury. “A high quality of stay has been created in the continuum of sophisticated, open and non-hierarchical learning spaces. Flexible utilisation options and the ability to completely dismantle the modular steel-wood hybrid construction were decisive factors in the design. A sustainable energy concept and the passive solar protection logic through the pergolas in front round off the picture of an absolutely contemporary architectural concept.” The jury rated the reduction of the materials used as a major strength of ‘this fresh and natural-looking architecture’. The continuing high level of popularity among students was also emphasised, which confirms the concept in everyday use.

The Student House was also honoured with the special ‘Debut Work of the Year’ award at the ICONIC AWARDS 2025 by the German Design Council. More than 560 projects from over 45 countries were submitted. The newly conceived, cross-disciplinary format honours outstanding achievements in architecture, interior design and product innovation.

With the Student House, Gustav Düsing and Max Hacke have presented a remarkable first work – a statement in favour of openness, sustainability and participation, praised the jury. It recognised the sensitive integration of the campus, the high architectural quality and the innovative use of sustainable materials: “In their collaboration for the new Student House at TU Braunschweig, Gustav Düsing and Max Hacke have succeeded in finding an answer to the needs of everyday university life in the post-pandemic era. While numerous lectures and presentations are now taking place online, the new building provides a meeting and identification space for students and lecturers from all degree programmes.” The consistent incorporation of sustainability principles is impressive: “The structure, which consists of only a few different components, can not only be redesigned or expanded if needs change – the steel-wood hybrid construction, like the modular façade, can be dismantled into individual parts and used for other purposes.”